


From These Seeds We Grow

by BustersJezebel



Category: Walking Dead, Walking Dead (Comics), Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-12-21
Updated: 2014-02-08
Packaged: 2018-01-05 09:36:42
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 28,346
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1092381
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BustersJezebel/pseuds/BustersJezebel
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Okay everyone, here is the first chapter in my multi chapter expansion of Daryl and Lori that was originally posted in Walking Dead Hook-Ups. I'm not fooling around and rating this Mature to start with though the smut doesn't start yet because anyone who knows me knows I'll more than earn that rating when I get to it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Quarry

**Quarry**

 

“Dear God!” Lori cries as she watches the explosions in Atlanta. Shane takes her in his arms and holds her tightly, turning her head away. He murmurs to her, tells her it will be okay, he’s there, he’ll never leave. But Lori is in shock. Surely not everyone in Atlanta had been infected? They turn unlike the other people who’d been looking for a vantage point and begin the hike back to their jeep.

About halfway there Lori stops. “I can’t do this. I can’t go on Shane, you have to take Carl and go on.” She sits on the ground silently, folding in on herself, looking almost like a praying mantis in repose with her gangly limbs. Shane squats in front of her.

“Ain’t goin’ anywhere Lori. I’ll take care of Carl and you. It’s always been you, you know.” And he kisses her senseless. Lori can’t even begin to fight him off and she doesn’t try. Shane was offering her a reason to live, feeling good, feeling again. The past weeks of the outbreak and months before that with Rick in a coma before he passed away were a blur against her sudden need to be loved and held. To be taken.

“Make me feel again Shane, make me feel.” Lori ignores Shane’s words of love and devotion, she ignores his mutters of how long he’s wanted her, wanted them. And she responds eagerly if not wholeheartedly. If her mind flutters repeatedly to her dead husband, well that was her secret. Neither of them see the shadow some feet away as it stands and watches them silently, waiting until they’ve finished and put themselves back together and continued on their way.

Daryl moves silently after them. He’d been trekking back from the vantage point he’d used to watch Atlanta be bombed when he’d come upon them. He’d seen the guy strutting up and down the highway talking and posturing a little. Beyond making sure he didn’t come into contact with Merle he’d more or less left him alone. Though he’d caved when he’d seen the kid. If it’d just been the woman he wouldn’t have bothered, but the kid, well…a kid was different.

So he’d told the guy about the quarry, mentioned it to the a-hole that beat his wife as well, again because of the kid. Daryl had one soft spot in his life and that was for kids. He sniffs the air as he passes where they’d lain and fucked. He could smell them, guy smelled like any other guy, but the woman. He paused for several seconds inhaling her smell. She smelled good, even after fuck knows how long on the road, she still smelled good.

He inhaled deeply, imprinting her on his senses, he’d be able to recognised her if he were blindfolded now from her scent alone. Then with a small tinge of regret that he had not been the man she’d been fucking in her mind if not her body he moved after them. It was time he was back to Mer anyway. But in his mind Daryl is replaying the scene he’d just witnessed. And if he himself replaced the guys she’d been fucking in mind and body, well that was his secret and his alone.

##########

 

Lori stays in the jeep with Carl as Shane gets out and talks to the people they can see gathered so far. They’d taken the turn off the road away from Atlanta after seeing what the Air force dropped a couple of nights ago. Lori was looking around when she saw Carol and Ed’s battered Cherokee pull in behind them. Shit. She liked Carol and Sophia as did Carl, but Ed was a pain in the arse. He gets out and ignoring Lori walks past her window hitching his belt as he moves to where there is a small group gathered.

“What’s going on Mum? Can I go see Sophia, please?” Carl asks.

God, he was at that age where he wouldn’t stay still or listen to anything she said. Sometimes she could just slap him. “No baby, not until Shane says it’s okay.” She answers brushing the flies away with one hand. She lifts her hair off the nape of her neck with the other and smiles over at Carol who smiles back. She hears Carl huffing in the seat behind her but ignores him, she’s thankful the jeep doesn’t have back doors or she’s sure Carl would ignore her and just get out.

Shane comes back and says they’re staying. He gets back in and moves the jeep, reversing it around so it’s ready if they need to leave in a hurry. She notices Ed do the same thing though the only other vehicle that had taken the time to do it is an old blue pick-up already parked, it has a low rider on the back. Or what Lori thinks is a low rider. She has no idea if that’s even the correct term for the bike and doesn’t care anyway. Then they get out, taking their belongings with them. Lori gives Carl their tent so he doesn’t just run off knowing that was what he’d had in mind when she sees the disgruntled look on his face. She turns with her arms full of stuff she can barely see around and bumps into a solid figure.

“Shit, sorry.” She says automatically not even looking at who she’d bumped into.

“No problem Legs, you can bump into me anytime.” Lori falters as she looks up, which is unusual in itself, she was usually at least the same height as men being close to six feet herself. And mostly leg as the guy called her.

“My name’s Lori, not legs.” She snaps looking at the guy who was grinning at her. She could tell immediately he was on something.

He steps back giving a mock bow, “My humble apologies dear lady.” He says as he turns away. Lori frowns as she watches him walk away. He was tall and lean and she knew he was going to be trouble. Lori jerks as Shane calls her name and she moves toward him. It is late that same evening when she is introduced to him again. Merle Dixon. And he has a brother. Daryl. Lori merely nods as she looks them over. Hillbilly white trash is what she thinks though it doesn’t take long for her opinion to be changed.

For the worse with Merle as he was using steadily and he was almost vivaciously loud when he was at the apex of his high. Lori learned over the coming weeks to turn in the other direction when Merle’s voice rose above a certain decibel. Daryl though. Daryl was an unknown. He hunted, set traps, was useful and ambiguously around without ever seeming to be. Lori and Carol and another woman who was a teacher, Jacqui started classes for the children. There were not even a half dozen in camp. Carl, Sophia and a few others. Jacqui oversaw the lessons and lent them books but let her and Carol take care of the actual lessons. Lori was happy with this arrangement.

“God, I’d love to be just lying beside a pool with a nice daiquiri.” Andrea’s words come out of nowhere as they cook dinner one night. Glenn had brought back strawberry jam that day and Carol had managed to make some jam drops, enough for everyone to have one at least. This had prompted Andrea’s longing for a strawberry daiquiri. Carol smiled though she didn’t offer anything up herself. Lori though for a few seconds.

“Bubble bath, hot, bubbles everywhere like in the movies.” From the sighs she gets after that sentence she figures her option had been popular. “I pushed for the house we had because of the master bath. Big enough for both Rick and I to just lie back and relax.” Shaking her head she looks around to see the women looking at her with sorrow and pity. She shakes her head. “No, I still have Carl, I have something to still be thankful for.” She continues to chop the remaining fresh vegetables they had for the stew and ignores what she knows are pitying glances. If she was honest with herself for once she and Rick had been heading for divorce anyway. And now she had Shane, kind of.

Lori frowns as she drops the vegetables into the simmering water. She pays no attention to Daryl Dixon as he drops some animal carcasses down on the makeshift table and walks away without saying anything to anyone.

Daryl looks back at her with a frown. He’d seen her and the cop making off together though they went in opposite directions each time. They went too far from camp and he didn’t know why they didn’t just use the fucking family tent she and the kid lived in. Daryl had never stayed around or listened to other’s talking enough to know Lori and Shane’s actual history. Shaking his head at the vagaries of humans he heads inside his own tent. Merle is sleeping and Daryl undresses and joins him. He was tired.

Their life settles in to some sort of a routine and Lori is on her way back from spending time with Shane one day when she and Daryl actually do something they don’t normally do. They interact with each other.

"Stop ‘n stand still dammit!" The words are whispered harshly at Lori and she freezes obediently as an arrow suddenly slides past her legs to slice through the snake on the trail in front of her. She would have stepped on it if not for that irritated whisper.

She stands while he slips silently past her and retrieves his arrow and the snake. His knife is in his hand and he slices off the head, slinging the body of the snake around his neck heedless of the blood dripping down his arm. Daryl looks her over. Lori knows that he knows she's just been with Shane. She doesn't know how she knows he knows, but he does. Bringing his eyes back to hers he shakes his head. "Don't let him take you so far out, less you got protection. An I don't mean the rubber kind neither." He snorts as he walks ahead of her back up the trail to their camp.

Lori raises a shaking hand to her lips as she stares after him. She doesn't realise it at the time but she appreciates his silent and stealthy walk. Daryl is a predator and he walks like one.

Some weeks later Lori watches as several of the group head into town with Glenn, she understands his unhappiness, you can move faster with just one person. Lori is going stir crazy wondering what is happening out in the world. Has this infection taken over the whole world? Or just their country? She remembers reports about it being less in the true country areas. And a couple of countries that stopped air traffic so were faring better. She wonders if they’re taking other survivors in.

Shaking her head she goes to lie down, she’s done all her allotted chores and Carol is on teaching duty this afternoon. She just needs five minutes to herself. She is irritated that she hadn’t been able to convince Shane to let her or someone put up signs warning them not to go to Atlanta, because of all the hordes. She presses the heel of one hand to her forehead, trying to push away the migraine she can feel lingering. She misses Rick.

It is a shocking thought but one she settles on nonetheless. She does miss him. His steadfastness if nothing else. The migraine settles in behind her right eye, throbbing in time with her heartbeat, draining her energy. Lori finds herself remembering her last words to Rick. She’d been spoiling for a fight and he’d not obliged her. He never obliged her, not like Shane did. But then Shane could only oblige her physically.

Wanting a release from everything and everyone around her and from the guilt she carried over Rick Lori tries to think of someone, someone who will take her mind off things, someone she can just imagine herself with. Trying to think of her favourite actor, the guy from her favourite movie that’d never admitted to liking let alone loving didn’t work. His face kept blurring. He was probably dead now anyway.

Still, there was someone in camp who kind of looked like him. Rolling on her side Lori pulls Daryl’s face to the forefront of her mind and she pictures him walking toward her with a smile she’d only ever seen one his face once. It had looked uncomfortable and he’d wiped it off as soon as he’d seen her watching him, but she’d still seen him smile. She bet no one else in camp had seen him smile. And she knew a lot of women single and attached had tried to work one out of him.

With her head throbbing harshly and the light of the day coming through the thin walls of the tent Lori smiles back at Daryl as she drifts off to sleep.

##########

The next day she is up and moving sluggishly. Her migraine’s always left her feeling like she had a hangover even though she never drank with them. She was wondering if she could dig out some sunglasses toward the afternoon when a blaring horn has them all on edge. It’s sounding constantly as a red Mustang moves up the quarry road.

When Glenn steps out and Jim cut’s off the horn the silence is blessed. Lori and Shane look at each other and Carl comes over as Glenn and Morales talk about the FNG they’d picked up. When Morales mentions him being a cop Shane becomes more alert even as Lori’s heart thuds. She knows Rick is dead, Shane had told her he’d seen his body but some part of her can’t help wishing.

Carl comes to her and they turn thinking to welcome him to camp. And Lori’s heart stops. It is Rick. Her husband is alive. He is here. As Rick hugs her Lori’s hard starts beating again, double time. She looks over at Shane and shuts herself off from him. He’d lied to her, he’d fucked her knowing Rick was alive. She closes her eyes to him and hugs her home. Her steadfastness.

##########

 

Daryl settles down for the night gnawing on some jerky. He was feeling twitchy. The deer he’d been tracking had been shot twice and hadn’t slowed down. She was leading him on a merry chase. She was also leading him back toward camp. Hopefully he’d catch her before she busted right through it or swung around. From the blood it’d be several more hours before she slowed down enough for him to catch.

Hopefully none of the infected found her first. It was a risk these days especially as she was leaking blood, they’d sniff it for sure. Closing his eyes Daryl enjoys the silence. Back in camp there was always noise of some kind. Most often the human kind, and more often than not it was of the sexual kind, especially in the evening. Wondering why Shane and Lori try to hide their relationship he fritters away a quiet peaceful evening as one can have these days. He couldn’t know of course that it would be his last for quite some time.

The next day when Daryl returns to camp he finds his group that he and his brother had kept fed for months had turned on his brother, leaving him to die on a rooftop in Atlanta. “What the fuck’s wrong with you people?” He yells in their faces. Only Rick Grimes keeps eye contact with him. Fuckin’ cop, of course he’s a fuckin’ cop. Daryl’s eyes widen slightly before they narrow even more as he hears Lori speak to him, guy was her fuckin’ husband. He snorts but says nothing, her and Shane weren’t his fuckin’ business, less she pissed him off more than she was right now. He got her wanting her old man to stay behind, reminded him of his own Ma begging their father. Didn’t work for either woman.

Idly Daryl wondered how many more times she’d try to beg Rick for shit before she gave up. That would be the beginning of the end, had been for his Ma.

When they return to the van with the guns but no Merle to find it gone, Daryl knows he’s taken it. They’re on their way back to camp and as much as he hates running he goes full pelt, wanting to make sure the children are safe. Merle would be too blinded and he could understand that, even approve of it, but the children were innocents.

##########

 

“Bury our fuckin’ dead, I never got to bury my fuckin’ brother, hell prick could still be alive for all I know. Never did care enough to stop and think, you fucker Mer, there were kids here.” Daryl mutters as he tries to sleep by the gutted fire. He can hear cries and sobs all around him. Andrea being the loudest.

He’d worked all day like a demon dragging, burying and burning and now he couldn’t fucking sleep. Rolling to his feet in one motion Daryl grabs his crossbow and heads for the water. He sits down on the rocky shore and lets the soft lap of the water relax him. After some time he rouses himself enough to stand and strip down. Dawn is breaking as he walks into the water and dives under relishing the coolness of the water on his skin.

Lori freezes on the footpath as she watches Daryl disrobe, she can see his body clearly in the pre-dawn light. She frowns over the tattoos and other marks on his back. Had he been in an accident? Then the spit dries in her mouth as he dives into the water and submerges himself. She presses a hand down low on her stomach as she feels herself clench down deep inside. “Down girl.” She mutters to herself as she turns and walks back up the path, leaving Daryl to his solitary swim.

But Jesus God, the guy had one truly spectacular butt. Better than her migraine induced fantasy had imagined. Ignoring the fluttering in her stomach and the longing to turn around and spy some more, maybe see a front view Lori returns to her family.

Her family, they were whole again, but would they be whole again? She thought they could be, but Shane, why had she been so God Damn stupid? She’d had rocks for brains that night. Lori could tell herself until the cows came home that he’d taken advantage but she knew full well if she’d said no, Shane would have stopped.

“Ugh! Get over yourself already, your husband is back, alive and well. You have your son, alive and well, you’re alive and well, everything else is icing.” Muttering to herself Lori walks into camp. Rick and Shane are talking, deciding to head to the Centre for Disease Control, the CDC. From there who knows. Lori methodically packs, she tries to get Carl to help but he’s too busy playing with Sophia.

Lori leaves them bee, Sophia is looking more relaxed than she’s ever seen her and Lori can pack by herself. Suddenly strong arms lift her tent and blankets just as she reached for them herself. Not looking at her Daryl walks them to Carol’s Cherokee. She nods a thank you that he doesn’t acknowledge and watches that butt walk away stopping when he gets to the children.

“You two, help your Ma’s, play when you’re packed.” His voice is firm but gentle enough that Sophia doesn’t spook. In fact she looks up at Daryl and flushes as she watches him walk away.

“Oh boy.” Lori mutters to herself, she recognises a crush.

“I figure her first crush could be worse.” Carol says softly as she stands beside Lori and watches Sophia with a smile.

“Yeah, man sure has a fine arse.” Lori says with a smile and a wink.

Carol chokes back a loud laugh, spluttering a cough that still causes several people to look over at her. Then she straightens up. “I’m partial to legs more than rump myself.” She snorts again as Lori just stares at her.

“Really?” Lori says, “It’s always the quiet ones.” She mutters before she splutters herself trying unsuccessfully to laugh quietly. If there was an edge of hysteria in their laughter, well that was their business.

When Lori returns to packing she is surprised to see all of their heavier stuff packed already, stacked exactly where she would have packed it herself. Rick hadn’t done it, Lori had had him in her sight the whole time. She turns to Daryl who is in his truck checking the bike was still strapped down securely.

“Thanks for the help.” She says as she walks uncertainly to the truck. Daryl stops and looks at her briefly before he shrugs. Lori looks up at him. “You need a hand with anything yourself?” A snort is her only answer. Rolling her eyes Lori walks away. She and Carol wait for Rick to arrive and they settle in the car and begin the trek to the CDC.

 

 


	2. CDC

Lori snuggles back on Rick as he steps into the shower behind her. They'd only managed to be together once since he'd returned to them. His first night in the quarry. She had already showered Carl and he was in the library with Sophia. She leans back into Rick's touch as he skims his hands over her stomach and up to her breasts, palming them before tweaking the nipples. A light moan comes from her throat as she opens her mouth and swallows some water, breathing heavier as arousal pools deep in her pelvis.

Rick had always been able to wreck her with a touch, sometimes she hated him for having that power, sometimes Lori thought that a man having the power of melting her with a touch was like losing part of herself to them and she hated that feeling that she didn't belong purely to herself. But tonight she didn't care, tonight she needed and tonight she welcomed Rick as she hadn't welcomed him for years. Maybe they could work together now, as a proper team, not as Rick always taking care of her the way he took care of everyone else.

Turning in Rick's arms Lori leans in to kiss him, their tongues whirl against each other teasingly, it's a game they've played many times, while there is nothing new in their touches, there is intimacy and knowledge that takes years to establish. Lori opens her legs for Rick just before his fingers reach her. Rick turns his hip so his cock is ready for her hand just as she begins to reach for it. Each move born out of years of having sex or making love. Her head tilts back as Rick pushes her back against the cool tile wall and Lori knows before she feels it that Rick's going to kiss her neck as she feels his clean-shaven face there. His lips sucking at her though he never uses his tongue which Lori has always tried to get him to do. Tonight she doesn't care. Doesn't push him to use his tongue on her.

Hitching her legs as Rick reaches for them Lori straddles him as he fits his cock inside her. Her moan is soft, Rick's slightly louder. Both conscious of their neighbours although Jenner had already said that everything was sound proofed within an inch of its life. The wine is still strumming in her blood and Lori finds it flitting around without rhyme or reason. And suddenly there is another face in the forefront of her mind. Not Shane. Someone else. Someone she doesn't welcome.

Trying to push him away he stubbornly persists in staying around, watching her with that amused smirk she'd only ever seen on his face a few times when no one else was around. His crooked smile quirking at her as he jerks his head at her louder moan from Rick speeding up his fucking. Shit, it's her mind, it can go where it wants, she knows she's having sex with Rick, not him.

Lori feels her orgasm welling within her as Rick kisses her. She kisses him back, more passionately than she has in years as her arms wrap around his shoulders, her breasts rubbing against his chest, her nipples hardening from Rick's chest hair brushing coarsely against them. God that felt good. She holds tighter when Rick tries to pull away. He's always balked at anything rough which had been when their bedroom troubles began. Lori didn't love rough, but she liked sensation, and if some sensation wasn't soft she was still up for it.

Rick persisted in treating her with kid gloves in the bedroom, like she was a fragile piece of china. And outside it, he treated her as someone to take care of, just like everyone else in his life. It didn't matter to him that she worked full-time, that she actually earned more than he did and maintained supervisory capacity over more staff than he did. She was still someone to be taken care of. Not an equal, never an equal.

Reigning herself in Lori focused on Rick. Her arms wrapped around him tightly as he leaned in and kissed her. She kissed him back feeling years lighter than she had in a long time. Her legs wind around Rick's hips, her ankles crossing and her heels digging into Rick's backside. She'd always liked his butt but he'd never let her play with it. Feeling her orgasm begin to crest Lori pulls back to breath and clenches down on Rick's cock, pulling him to orgasm with her. It had been so long for both, since they'd done this together.

Holding him tightly Lori doesn't allow Rick to withdraw as he had done back at the quarry. She leans her head back on the wall as she feels Rick's come splash her insides. She smiles loving the feeling.

She's drying her hair when Rick comes up behind her, hands sliding around her waist in a hug. "I need to talk to Jenner." He presses a kiss on her shoulder softly as he says this and Lori merely nods. Of course he did. If it wasn't Jenner it would have been someone else she was sure. Just checking they were all safe.

"That's fine, I'm going to the library to see what they've got to read." Lori turns and presses a quick kiss to Rick's cheek and he smiles at her as he takes his leave.

Feeling pleasantly buzzed and still holding a glass of wine Lori inspects the books lazily when Shane enters the room.

##########

Minutes later as Lori rushes out of the library and down the hall she hears an arctic cold voice speaking behind her.

"Stay away from her, you hear me cop? She said she's done, you respect that." Lori stops and looks back. Daryl is standing in front of Shane, knife in one hand, bottle in the other. He is deadly and he stops Shane in his tracks. He waits until Shane has gone on his way before he turns himself and comes up short seeing her still there watching him. Lori nods at him in thanks and he shakes his head at her in disgust before he walks away to his own room which is several doors away from hers and Ricks.

Lori raises a trembling hand to her mouth, Daryl had looked at her like she was nothing. Lori felt like nothing. All her earlier good feeling vanishing in the blink of an eye. What she'd done with Shane was reprehensible. She would never forgive herself, never mind expect Rick to forgive her. Before she can second guess herself Lori follows Daryl and knocks quietly on his door. She gets no answer. She frowns, she'd seen him enter. Was he passed out already? He didn't seem like the kind of guy to pass out by drinking too much. Was he ignoring her? That was certainly more likely.

Sighing Lori turns to leave when the door opens. Daryl is standing there wearing water and a towel and nothing else. Lori just stares at him. He was beautiful she realised. Shaking her head before she gets anymore ideas than was healthy Lori looks at Daryl. "Thank you." She says no more knowing less is more with Daryl and turns to leave.

Daryl's hand grasps her arm before she can turn away. He looks at her, they're the same height. She's trembling, he can feel it. "You gonna come clean with Rick?" His question is abrupt but quiet.

"Why?" Lori asks, she isn't uppity as she's prone to be, too shaken up he guesses.

"Because Shane ain't the type to give up easily. If you ain't gonna tell Rick you tell me if he gives you any trouble." He looks at Lori as she stares at him in shock. What, did she think he'd allow the man to attack her again? "I mean it." Daryl steps back and shuts the door in her face.

Daryl returns to the shower she'd taken him from. Leaning both hands against the tile wall he lets the water run down his body. Tilting his head back he soaks himself before he moves and squirts some shampoo from the dispenser. It smells female but he doesn't care. It's shampoo. He scrubs his face with it as well and then rinses before he soaps himself down. Tugging on his cock a couple of times Daryl lets it fill as he scrubs down his legs and feet, grabbing the nail brush he cleans his toenails and then his hands and fingernails, getting out the fine ingrained dirt and the blood that he never seemed to be able to wash off himself these days. God that felt good.

Only thing better now would be a willing body to lose himself in. Finishing his shower Daryl dries off and hitches his towel around his waist. He systematically goes through his bathroom and bedroom looking for anything he can use. It's habit more than anything. But a feeling of unease is skittering down his spin. Jenner had been nothing short of welcoming but the feeling persisted. It had kept him alive over the years; he'd learned to listen to it. So he scavenged what he could, shoved it in his pack and left that and his crossbow right beside his door.

Just as he's thinking of settling down to bed a soft knock comes to his door. He frowns. It wasn't Lori, she'd said her piece. He considers ignoring it until they try the handle. He'd locked it of course but then they knock again slightly louder. They weren't giving up.

Walking over Daryl opens it. The person who greets him on the other side is holding a bottle of bourbon and leaning their shoulder on the door jamb. "Share a drink with me?" Daryl looks at them rubbing his chin with the hand not holding the doorknob.

"Ain't got any rubbers." He knows what they've come for. And while he's willing, he's not willing to play Daddy. A half-smile crosses their face before they slide their free hand into a pocket and pull out a strip of them. His eyebrow raises. "Reckon we can use 'em all tonight?" He's saying yes but only on that condition.

"I do, I know you drank but you didn't get too drunk like everyone else. I watched you." Daryl raises both eyebrows this time then without speaking further he steps back and lets them into his room, closing and locking the door behind them. He follows them as they walk to the foldout he'd already opened and watches as they put the condoms and bourbon down on the side table. Then he stands back as they start to disrobe.

Walking back to the door Daryl switches off the overhead light leaving only the lamp on the side table lit. It softens everything in the room, including them. His arms slide around their waist pulling them up against him, pushing their hips into him so they can feel his filling cock. They moan lightly.

"Oh you like that huh? Plenty more where that came from." His mouth swoops in and kisses the lips that are smiling at him, opening over them, sucking on their fullness, nipping them lightly. They pull away from him, still smiling as their hands drift down his torso and pull on his towel. It comes off leaving him naked as well. Their hands drift over his cock, stroking it gently, tugging on his balls just the way he likes.

"Know your way around, I like that." Daryl says softly before he leans down and takes an erect nipple into his mouth.

"Harder." Their word is whispered but he hears it and obeys, sucking strongly on their nipple, pulling it into his mouth as his tongue rasps over the tip. They taste like the soap he'd just used on his own skin. He flinches back however when their hands move around his back, touching him lightly. Daryl turns them around smoothly without them realising he was pulling away from their touch. His mouth cruises down the side of their neck from below their ear to the sweet spot where their neck and shoulder join. He nips them there, firmer than he'd nipped their lips and they shiver under his touch. He palms their breasts and his thumbs flick over their nipples teasingly causing them to moan again.

Smiling he pulls them lightly so they lean forward and get on the bed. He watches their shapely backside sway from side to side, cheeks opening for him so he can see the prize he'll be getting a taste of tonight. He picks up a condom, opening it and rolling it on his cock before he slides his hands over their arse and then his fingers down their crack and beyond. He dips them inside their pussy. They are already wet for him.

"Hmm, wet for me already, did you play with yourself to get that way, or is this all me hmm?" He questions teasingly. He doesn't care what her answer is, he'll take her anyway. She was the answer to his unasked want tonight. Someone to lose himself in. Literally. Sliding his cock inside her wetness it's Daryl's turn to groan a little. "Fuck, you're hot." He says meaning it literally. Her body heat is causing him to break out in a sweat despite the coolness of the room.

"Harder." Her voice is barely more than a whisper again.

Daryl teases her. "Huh? I can't hear you." He answers knowing full well what she'd asked for.

"Harder." She says again slightly louder.

"Harder? You want me to go like this?" Daryl thrusts into her pussy with a fast snap of his hips.

"Yes…" Her word trails off into another moan. Woman could sure moan. He slows down again, teasing her, making her writhe on his cock. But she'd wanted to be used. He was going to oblige her. "Harder." She asks again and Daryl smiles down at her, watching his cock sliding in and out of her, her skin gleaming, she was covered in perspiration just as he was.

His hands bracket her hips and his fingers dig in before he brings a hand back and slaps one of her butt cheeks. She jolts and clenches down on his cock and he grins. "Oh now, that was nice." He slaps her again and again she clenches down on him. "Very nice. But if want harder you gotta' say the magic word." He slaps her butt cheek again and rolls his eyes as she clenches down on him instead. "Woman ain't no way you're gonna fuckin' top me from the bottom. You want harder, you beg for it or I'll fuck you all night just like this." He can't help making her beg for it.

She'd come to him with condoms for fucks sake, he had a right to make her say please. He shakes off his conscience telling him he's acting like his father. Shakes off the years of blocking his ears to noises in the next bedroom of women crying, pleading and begging for more. Or for his old man to stop. He never did.

Raising his hand one more time Daryl slaps her arse again loving the way she clinched down on him when he did so.

"Please Daryl, please. Harder." Daryl smiles down at her back and begins to move. Hard and fast he fucks into her pussy, letting her moan and move around him, clenching down each time he lands a random smack on her flexing arse. His toes curl as he feels his balls draw up. He's close to coming. Winding his arm around her waist he slides his fingers through her wiry curls and circles his middle finger over her clit, firm and fast, over sensitising her. Almost forcing her to come. He leans over her back and kisses her shoulder as she comes and then he pulls back and fucks himself into her focusing on his own orgasm now.

When his flashes through him he feels her clench down on him, keeping him coming.

Falling down to the side of her he lies on his back catching his breath, she falls forward on her stomach and does the same.

"Why me?" He asks after they'd calmed down and been lying silently together for some time.

She pauses before leaning up on her elbows to look down at him, her eyes dark in the light. "Because I figure you're the only one who wouldn't treat me any different when we get up in the morning. Am I wrong?" Shaking his head Daryl looks up at her.

"Nope." He answers as he grabs her elbow and hauls her across his chest so he can take her mouth and start round two.

##########

Lori closes the door on their bedroom. Rick isn't back yet so she can't lock it. He'd want to know why and wouldn't be put off with a word like 'habit' they'd never locked their bedroom door back at home. She puts on a sweater. She is chilled to the bone. And she paces waiting for Carol to bring Carl back to her. When she does Lori settles him in bed and reads him to sleep.

But her mind is on Shane. And Daryl. She couldn't look to him in the future. She had to handle Shane herself. And she would. She'd just stay away from him, not let herself get caught on her own with him again.

Lori is in bed with her back turned deliberately when Rick returns and climbs in snuggling behind her. The tears that fall now are tears of shame and recrimination toward herself. She is weak, she had decided she needed a man to be strong for her now. She who always railed against Rick trying to take care of her before; but at the first sign of trouble she'd fallen and let Shane pick her up and keep picking her up. It was stupid and wrong and hypocritical and she knew it. It was her fault Shane couldn't or wouldn't let go.

Daryl's look had made her see her inadequacies. He didn't hide from anyone that she could see while she hid from everyone, even herself. She was a joke. But as Lori cries she vows that she won't continue to be a joke. Daryl won't be able to continue to look down on her. She will get strong and stay strong and no one will have to look out for her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N - Yes I did have a specific female in mind when I wrote this.


	3. Before The Farm And At The Farm

**Before The Farm**

Daryl unloads his bike without any help from the others. He glances at Lori as she starts to sort through his stuff in the pick-up and continues offloading his bike.

"You got anything in particular you want to keep?" She asks him quietly.

He shakes his head. "Anything useful, anything the group can use." He grunts as he finally gets the bike on the ground. He pushes down the kickstand and then checks the fuel lines and spark plugs. He switches the ignition and then kick starts it. She goes first try. Merle may have had bad taste in life but he sure had good taste in engines.

Going to the cab of the truck Daryl grabs his backpack. He opens the glove box and take out an old tin box shoving it inside his backpack. He bends down looking under the seat and grabs the rags and torch he keeps there along with the toolbox. Leaving his backpack on the seat the takes the rest to the RV and Shane stashes it. He's watching Andrea and Daryl is glad his focus is not on Lori for once.

Shane was leaving his jeep behind as well. They were taking the RV, Carol's Cherokee and his bike. Daryl wasn't overly happy with the RV but he understood why they were trying to keep it. Keep a semblance of their old lives. Wouldn't work in the long run, but he understood it.

Lori brushes past him with his tent and other useful stuff. He'd check to make sure she hadn't left anything else they could use behind but she was on the ball with shit like that. More so than the rest of them actually.

At the tailgate of his truck he stopped for a second and just breathed. She'd stayed. Why? He couldn't fathom opting to let your life just vanish. It was wrong on so many levels he couldn't even begin to understand it. Daryl could barely look at Andrea knowing she'd tried to as well. Only the old man had been able convince her to do otherwise. Shaking his head he turns as Lori walks up.

"Did I miss anything?" She asks standing beside him and looking in the truck.

"That bag there." Daryl motions to another backpack. Lori frowns.

"That's just rags, we have plenty." Daryl snorts.

"Rags I wear, 'S my fuckin' clothes woman." He answers turning away to hide his smile. She was right, they were rags for the most part, but they were all he had. He had good boots, his crossbow and steel for close-up work. Anything else was gravy. Though he'd need more when winter came on. He'd not taken any winter clothing at all when he'd left home to get Merle.

"Shit, sorry Daryl." Lori muttered to his back.

"All good, but if you'd not leave it behind I'd be thankful. Tell your man I'm goin' huntin' we need meat. I don't know about you but I can't take another night of Dale and Shane and baked beans on their own." He walks off without saying anything further but he hears the quiet snicker of Lori behind him.

##########

Lori watches Daryl's backside saunter away from her. There was no other word to describe it other than saunter. Shaking her head she grabs his backpack of clothes and takes it to the Cherokee stashing it safely with her and Rick's belongings. Then she goes to tell Rick Daryl had gone hunting. He nods and continues on about what they can scavenge from the small shopping complex around them. It has been fairly heavily looted but they've found what they can, Carol had Sophia and Carl scrambling around under shelves to get what people had dropped which had turned out to be a good idea. Lori sorts through what Carol brings her as the kids continue to crawl around on the floor getting happily filthy.

Carl was occupied for the time being which she was grateful for. Lori cuts her eyes to Rick and Shane. She wishes Rick would spend more time with Carl, she's always wished that. Not that Rick wasn't a good father, he was. When he was around. And that was the trouble. He hadn't been around as much as he should have been. She knew Carl needed him. They had a bond she and Carl didn't have but Rick seemed to be unaware of it.

Sighing Lori goes to Andrea and enlists her help. She is still somewhat unsteady and not happy with being forced to survive but Dale was unapologetic in his quest to keep her from killing herself. Some hours later Lori feels Rick slide his arms around her waist. "Hey." She speaks as she leans back on him.

"Hey yourself, we're gonna push on a little further before we camp. I don't want to spend the night here."

"Daryl's not back yet." Lori answers. She has no idea why Rick doesn't want to spend the night where they are, there hasn't been any traffic, infected have been minimal.

"Dammit, there's no line of clear sight. We could get trapped real quick. Where the hell is he?" He asks turning around. Lori knows he likes Daryl but she also knows he's antsy at the moment and that means he pushes people.

"He'll be here, we can wait Rick." Rick is about to open his mouth when a whistle cuts through the humid air. Shane walks over to help Daryl lay the carcass of the goat on the hood of an abandoned vehicle. "There you see?" Lori's question is a little on the sarcastic side and Rick looks at her with a slight frown but Shane distracts him.

"Says he'll be half an hour at most. We can wait or he'll catch up." Shane takes off his cap and scratches the back of his head. He didn't like the look of the place either.

"We wait, no one gets left behind remember?" Lori speaks firmly and goes to help Carol pack the food and little water they'd found. She ignores Rick and Shane looking after her.

"I can't believe they were going to consider that." Carol mutters to her as they sort and stack and pack while keeping a mutual eye on the children.

"Men." Is all Lori can say on the matter.

Within twenty minutes they're on the road again. They camp that night and Daryl shows she and Carol how to use wood to spit roast the goat. Apart from the CDC it's the most meat they've eaten in one sitting for a while. A lump rises in Lori's throat as she realises it's because their group is so small now. Suddenly Lori stands and holds out her cup of water. She waits until everyone looks at her.

"To Jacqui and Jim and those who left and those we've lost." She doesn't mention Ed's name. Just the most recent two they'd lost.

No others stand though they echo her toast word for word. Then Daryl stands and raises his cup.

"To Jacqui." He says no other names and sits down again. Lori nods at him before she sits down herself.

The next morning they're on their way, travelling slow but constantly toward Fort Benning. Lori relaxes in the car as she and Rick and Carol talk about anything and nothing, she laughs as she and Rick recount their aborted Grand Canyon trip with Carl as a baby. But it brings a feeling of melancholy as they realise its unlikely they'll ever get there now as Sophia requests.

Just then the RV slows down. Rick pulls to the side and they get out. There is a massive traffic snarl ahead. Fine for Daryl to get through on the bike but not the rest of them without any trouble. And then the RV's water hose busts again.

"I don't feel right about this, this isn't an abandoned store, these are people, their belongings." Lori shades her eyes. Everyone is looking at her like she's crazy. They might be dead but they were people once. She is outvoted so begins to look for stuff they can use. She tries to look for non-personal stuff but pauses when she sees Carol holding a red blouse against her own body.

"Ed never let me wear nice things." Is all Carol says as she folds the blouse and puts it back. Lori doesn't answer but she looks around. She doesn't like it but they're right. These people, yes they were people but they're dead now, they have no further use for the belongings. And so Lori looks for anything useful, personal belonging or not.

Just then a wave of queasiness swamps her. Shit, she hoped she wasn't coming down with something.

"You okay?" Daryl asks quietly as he passes her by scavenging as well. He stops but doesn't look at her not wanting anyone else to notice them.

"Yeah, I'm fine, just queasy, hope I'm not coming down with something." Lori straightens up and wipes her mouth with the back of her hand, she hadn't vomited but it was a close thing.

"Something like a second heartbeat you mean?" Daryl says to her as he continues on his way leaving Lori staring after him. She blanks for several seconds and then tries to calculate but is stopped by Rick's whistle and whisper shout. She drops and rolls under a vehicle with Carol. When Carol's breathing grows heavier and louder she places her hand over her mouth. They watch their children and Lori looks across to Rick.

Thoughts flash in her brain before they're wiped out by the shambling hoard of feet that pass them by. They take forever, walking slow and steady the way they do. Lori flinches internally at the odd stumps and broken feet she sees some of them walking on or dragging behind them. When they've been passed by as far as they can tell and they crawl out from under their cars the air is split by a scream of terror.

Sophia is off down the embankment and Rick follows her, leaving Lori with her heart in her throat.

* * *

**Farm**

Lori's eyes close slowly. Carl is going to get better, Shane had returned with the right equipment. Otis, the man who had shot Carl did not. She can't bring herself to care. Carl was going to live and that is all that mattered. Shutting her eyes Lori drifts, she hears engines and opens them some time later to see Daryl's bike and the RV drive up to the farm and stop at the grove of trees not too far from the house.

Without realising she's doing it Lori watches Daryl switch off the bike and push the kickstand down with his hand before he stands and grasps his crossbow and slings it over his shoulder. Settling further back into the arm-chair by the window she closes her eyes without realising Daryl had stopped and was looking up at her as well. Lori smiles as she finally drifts off to sleep.

##########

Lori heads toward Daryl as he comes out of the RV. "Don't bother, she ain't comin'," He answers her unspoken question.

"Really?" Lori shades her eyes as she looks at him. He looks seriously pissed off, more so than she's ever seen him she thinks.

"Yeah, fuckin' stupid bitch." He snarls before he heads toward the freshly dug graves.

"You did what you could, more than what anyone else here did combined, you didn't give up like we, like even Carol did Daryl. That's nothing to be ashamed of." She speaks to his back as he's loping ahead of her.

Daryl turns on a dime to look at her. "I know what I did and I know what none of you did, I'm ashamed of all of you for not doing more." He says simply as he moves away.

Lori wraps one arm around her middle as if to protect her unborn child from the hard truth that had just verbally slapped the shit out of her and the other over her mouth to stifle the exclamation of pure guilt that wanted to leave her mouth. He was right. He usually was.

Later that evening when he's packed and moved to some old ruins further away she tells the others to leave him be. Rick frowns at her but doesn't say anything.

##########

A few days later Lori sighs as she sinks down into a chair on the Greene porch. She needs to breathe, just take a breather from everything. She's exhausted, more so now because she's carrying and everyone knows it. And she's sick, morning sick as well as so very sick of taking care of people. Watching Beth had exhausted her. But she was trying to step up like she'd sworn to at the CDC. And after what Daryl had said when Sophia had been found and finally laid to rest.

But Andrea, that argument had drained her. Is that what everyone thought of her? That she had everything still? Whoopdedo. She had a child who ran to the beat of his own drum, a husband who could barely acknowledge her as being different from those he minded in everyday life and an ex-lover who wouldn't let go. The ex, well he wanted to father the child she was having and the one she had and the father of the one she already had could to nothing more than pat him on the head as if he were two instead of ten. Yet he was letting him handle a weapon. And she was called a Queen Bee and hypocritical.

Lori wanted to walk away from them all. Several months ago she would have. Just taken off and driven, anywhere for the silence, so she could hear herself think, dream. Just be. Now though, she couldn't and she was mentally exhausted as a result. And besides, the reason they were all the way they were was because of the lack in her. God knows she'd loved Rick in the beginning but did she still love him, or had she ever truly been in love with him? Any more than he'd been in love with her? "Argh!" She was driving herself crazy with these thoughts. She did love Rick, he accepted her and her unborn child whoever it belonged to.

He accepted that she had been unfaithful to him; was willing to overlook it and still be the husband to her he'd always been. He would raise her unborn child exactly the same way he'd raised Carl, with unconditional love. And why did that make her sad?

God, she didn't know which way was up anymore. And she didn't even know if he was looking at her differently and she didn't know why Daryl Dixon's opinion mattered. But it did. He was another who marched to the beat of his own drum, though unlike Carl he could make it beat parallel alongside everyone else's.

Though he'd certainly been blunt enough when she'd asked him to go looking for Rick. Lori snorts as she thinks of what he'd called her. "I'm not Olive Oyl, but you're sure Popeye." She closes her eyes in mortification as she hears a snort behind her,

"Sure thing Olive." His voice is teasing. Lori nearly drops off her seat in shock and turns her head so fast she almost gets whiplash. He's standing there in his jacket, a concession to the cooling weather, his crossbow is over his shoulder as always. She remembers how he'd held and comforted Carol when Sophia had been discovered in the barn. And then how he'd tried to get her to attend Sophia's funeral.

"Sorry Daryl." She says simply. She knows if she says anything else she'll put her foot in her mouth. It's almost becoming a habit when she speaks to Daryl. Maybe she should come with instructions Lori thinks to herself. 'when in the presence of Daryl Dixon, open mouth; insert foot.' Daryl just grins at her though. Lori is surprised to find her heart skips a beat as his eyes crinkle at her in amusement. It skips another beat when she realises that he has never grinned at anyone else the way he's full on grinning at her now.

"Nah, I'm sorry, though you are lean 'n leggy an' bein' a brunette, you kinda' resemble her you know. Maybe you should put your hair up in one of those bun things and see if anyone else calls you Olive." He grins at her again. Lori clears her throat.

"Yeah, well. You call me Olive and I'll call you Popeye." She answers in return.

Daryl surprises her by just chuckling. "Deal." He tips his fingers to a hat she's never seen him wear saying, "Good day to you Olive." And he walks away. Lori stares after him flummoxed. Had he been flirting with her? She shakes her head and rests it back on the chair, her eyes sliding to half-mast as she finds herself watching his very fine backside. She winces when he calls back to her.

"Starin's rude you know." How did he know she was watching him?

"And not on your life will I put my hair up in a bun like that." She mutters still sneaking peaks at his backside as he moves further away. She is surprised though knows full well by now that she shouldn't be when she hears his chuckle float back to her on the air. He'd heard, of course he'd heard.

* * *

Daryl breathes a sigh of relief when he sees Lori is out of the truck like a shot and Carl is in her arms, Rick follows. She and her kid were gonna be okay. Not that being on the road was gonna be good for someone expecting, but they were alive and not bitten. He frowns when Rick says not to go back for Andrea though. Didn't feel right. But he was right, she'd be long gone, she'd learned from he and Shane well enough, if she didn't get bit, she'd survive.

They take what little is left and head out. Carol rides in one of the cars and he is thankful. He'd never had a passenger on a bike before, it'd felt damn weird and he could almost feel Merle fucking screaming at him. 'Pussy don't get on my bike baby bro.' Yeah sure Mer, what the fuck ever.

When they stop for the night on the side of the road Rick drops his bomb. They're all infected, when they die whether it be by a bite or not they'll all turn. Fuck. Daryl closes his eyes for a few seconds to process it. Of course they're all infected, it makes the most sense. Something the government had tried to inoculate them with most likely that had gone wrong. Maybe the UN since it started in several countries at the same time.

Daryl listens with half an ear as Carol mutters to him. He shakes his head in disagreement and tells her in no uncertain terms he's staying with Rick. He watches Rick and Lori and Carl and a frown crosses his face. Something had happened. They weren't talking, weren't touching Carl was carefully between them. Rick had given Carl his jacket, not Lori, Lori was pregnant.

Shaking his head Daryl settles down and puts thoughts of the Grimes' out of his head. They've got some fucking shitty times coming up.


	4. The Road

Lori looks at Carol as they bathe in the stream. Maggie and Beth stand guard, they'll switch when she and Carol have finished bathing. Carol looks happier than she has in a long time. Wiping herself down and then turbaning her wet hair in the towel Lori dresses. She groans as she does up her jeans.

"Fold the waistband over." Carol is suddenly there her hands folding over Lori's waistband. It eases the squeeze.

"Thanks, nice trick." Lori will not ask Rick if they can stop to look for some larger clothes she can wear. She hasn't slept with Rick or spoken to him beyond what's necessary since that first night on the road a few weeks ago. They travel together, Carl hangs with Rick, a newer level of maturity making him seem like a stranger to Lori.

"Ed wouldn't let me get any maternity clothes, I had to make do." Carol answers simply.

"Ed was an arse." Lori answers. She has gotten blunter, become more her sarcastic self with Carol over the last few weeks. A higher level of friendship was growing between them, walls were crumbling.

"That he was, all men can be I figure. And while we're talking men, if you ever want to talk, I can listen. I know I'm not Rick's biggest fan, but I'm a fan of yours so to speak, I'd listen, if you want me to that is." Carol dries off her hair and finishes dressing. They exchange places with Beth and Maggie and watch for them while they bathe.

Lori can hear the men faintly around the bend, they're laughing about something as they bathe too. "Thanks, I appreciate it. But I think maybe we need a break. I'm just sorry it has to be played out like this in front of everyone." Lori says no more. She's been thinking and in thinking she has realised she and Rick don't have anywhere near the same feelings for each other they'd once had. They hadn't for a long time before the infection hit if she was being honest. But Rick was paying attention to Carl now, being there for him as he hadn't been before and Carl was blossoming from it. Lori wouldn't take that away from him.

Rick would be there for her child when it was born, she knew that too. She could live with herself, she needed to, she needed to know who Lori Grimes was without a man to stand in front of her. But God, she wished she had some better fitting clothes.

##########

Daryl laughs sardonically as T splashes Glenn who squeals like a freaking girl. "'S water Chinaman, you ain't a fuckin' cat, get in and clean yourself, smell like a walker." He says as he wades into the water. His shoulders brace as they always do expecting someone to comment on his back, modesty was something they'd all had to give up being on the road this time. Him included.

Diving under Daryl resurfaces and works the bar of soap into his increasingly shaggy hair. Then he watches Glenn as he minces into the cold water as he rinses his hair and soaps and scrubs the rest of his body down. Shaking his head Daryl finishes washing just as Glenn submerges himself. He wades out and shakes himself before tossing the soap to Carl who catches it and wades into the water. Daryl knows full well Carl will be finished and Rick or Herschel will have started bathing before Glenn is even half-finished.

"Maybe we should let the love birds bathe together after all, Maggie might be able to get Glenn to hurry his arse along." He says to T who laughs. Daryl looks at Herschel who merely looks back. Daryl shrugs. They were still finding their feet on the road, only thing they had in common so far was their support of Rick in keeping them alive. They'd work or they wouldn't.

Shivering Daryl dries off and dresses quickly. The nights are downright cold now. He stands guard while the rest of the men bathe, darkness is falling by the time they head back. They meet the women coming back at the same time. Daryl looks at Lori's hair turbaned in a towel and he swears he sees the goose bumps on the back of her neck. He frowns. Was she cold?

As they eat their dinner that evening Daryl surreptitiously watches her. She is cold. Shivering in fact. He watches as Carol takes the towel off her head and then patiently brushes her hair as dry as possible. Then Lori sits by the fire with her back to it letting it dry further. She should have bathed during the day when it was warmer Daryl thought. He glanced at Rick. He should have thought of that.

Over the next few days Daryl watches Lori. She is feeling the cold, a lot. He then watches Rick. He can tell Rick is aware of it but he does nothing. Daryl shakes his head. Fucker, she was pregnant. Didn't fucking matter whose child it was, shouldn't matter whether she and Rick were at odds. The baby was innocent.

A few days later Daryl approaches Lori. "Here, wear this." He drops one of his flannel shirts in front of Lori. "You need it more than me." He doesn't look at her. He's surprised when she just tugs it on without even checking it. It wasn't clean, he'd been wearing it a couple of days before he realised she needed it more than him. He'd finally given up on Rick and decided to take matters into his own hands.

Her pregnancy hadn't slowed her any yet but he'd checked with Carl and she was feeling the cold more than she usually did. He didn't know what the fuck Rick was doing other than ignoring her. Daryl thought if he could help keep her warm that wasn't a bad thing.

"Thanks Popeye." She says to him and he laughs quietly. Their private joke.

"Welcome Miz Olive." He answers as he walks away. He blinks a few minutes later when he sees her holding the collar of his shirt to her cheek, rubbing and sniffing it as she looks around to make sure no one was watching her. Was she sniffing him? Daryl jerks in realisation that Lori might like his smell. Did she like him? Shaking his head he moves off to take his turn at watch.

As the weeks go by Daryl finds himself looking for treats for her more and more. Practical stuff; socks, mittens, scarves. Everything he can find to keep her warm he gives to her. She's slowly getting larger and he's heard Herschel mentioning to Carol that he's worried because Carl had not been a natural birth. And fear grips Daryl's heart. He doesn't question it, merely worries even more.

Rick has finally talked to him, Daryl now knows they're over for now but he hopes that Lori will find happiness again when the baby is born. That it will bring them back together. He ignores the kernel of jealously in his heart. Jealousy that Rick has what he wants. He wasn't husband material anyway. Too ugly, inside and out.

##########

Lori breathes a sigh of relief as she lies down. They're in a tent for tonight, Carol is still outside finishing up their meal preparations. She'd shooed Lori away with an order to rest. Tilting her head Lori looks out the tent window. She can see the tent next to hers. Angled so it's flap is facing her tent window. She's watching it idly when she realises its Daryl's tent. He crouches at the entrance and pushes a tent-peg in further. Lori's eyes drift over him.

He'd lost weight, they all had. But he still looked good, better maybe, though he could do with a haircut. Rolling on her side awkwardly she watches him more intently. She remembers when she'd thought of him with Rick at the CDC. And with a shake of her head she tried to push him away, but he kept returning, even as she thought of him she opened her eyes again and he was still there.

Sitting in front of the tent now, angled to catch the last of the sun as he cleaned his bow. Suddenly he pauses and his eyes look up at her tent window. Lori's heart jerks wondering if he can see her. Cocking his head he stares steadily at the dark gauze window of her tent. Then that smile that she has never seen him give another drifts across his face and he winks. Winks. He did know, somehow he could see her.

"How you doin?" His question is soft, only for her ears.

"Pregnant and cold. You?" Lori returns softly.

"Fine as frogs hair Olive, fine as frogs hair." Lori laughs quietly.

"Last I heard frogs didn't have hair Popeye, you colour-blind or something?" She smiles back and his own grin increases.

"Nope, not at all why'd you ask?"

"Because you must think I'm blonde to believe frogs have hair is all." Lori snickers to herself as she answers Daryl. Score her.

"Would I do that Miz Olive?" He looks down as he runs a damp rag over the stock of his crossbow. Then before Lori can answer his blue eyes have looked up and caught hers again. They laugh quietly together.

"Yes Popeye you damn well would and you know it." Lori snorts as Daryl chokes back a louder laugh. Both of them are talking quietly so they don't attract other's attention.

"I'll take the fifth." Is all Daryl has to say, then he changes the subject. "You warm enough now? Need anything in particular?" He asks Lori, his eyes glance up from his bow and he looks steadily at her.

Pursing her lips Lori looks at him before she rolls her eyes. "Yeah I do need something but I doubt you'll be able to find them." Before Daryl can ask her what exactly she needs Lori answers him anyway. "Long johns. I could really do with some long johns Daryl."

Instead of the laugh or embarrassment she expects Daryl merely nods. "Size?" he asks.

"Uh, small and long. They'll stretch when I do." Lori answers as she looks at him. "You'll look for them for me?" She is surprised. She'd figured long johns would be like feminine hygiene products. Something most men avoided at all costs.

"'S what you need, I'll see what I can do, can't promise anything though." Daryl looks at her as he finishes cleaning his weapon and then he slides his knife off the sheath on his hip. He keeps it angled along the front of his hipbone, not direct on the side as Rick does. Lori wonders suddenly if he did that so it framed his cock. It had always drawn her eye and Andrea had actually been the one to wonder that aloud one day.

"How come you keep it at the front, not the side? Your knife?" She asks out of the blue.

"Shoulder injury. Too far to stretch if it's right on the side, this way I can get it with either hand. Why?" he asks as he takes out a stone and starts to sharpen the blade.

"Andrea wondered one day if you wore it there to frame your cock. Made me wonder." Lori realises what she'd said when Daryl's hands on the whetstone stopped moving and he stilled completely as he looked over at her.

"You look at my dick a lot Olive?" He says after a long pause in which they do nothing but stare at each other.

Lori stares into Daryl's blue eyes, she can see his pupils expanding even as they continue to stare at each other. Thinning her lips Lori gathers herself. Closing her eyes briefly she opens them to see Daryl still looking at her.

"Yes, Popeye, I do. More than I should." Lori watches Daryl closely trying to see a response to her answer but he gives none, merely continuing to look at her. Before Daryl can answer her at all a crash across the clearing distracts both of them. Daryl is up and gone like a shot and Lori scrambles after him. She stands with her handgun in her hand when she gets outside the tent.

It was nothing, T had dropped some pans. Shaking her head Lori retreats to the tent. She rolls on her side away from Daryl's tent. She doesn't hear him return either. What had they just done? More, what had she admitted to Daryl?" That she checked him out certainly. Did he realise it was more than that? That she had genuine feelings for him, had done for a long time? Lori closes her eyes. She can't go there, it would be unfair to Daryl to start something when her life is so much in disarray.

Ignoring the voice that told her Daryl wasn't uninterested and that her life being in disarray had nothing to do with her feelings Lori deliberately blanks her mind and manages to find sleep. If her dreams were populated by a blue-eyed, short-tempered, scruffy man no one knew but her.

When they stop to make camp again the next night Lori notices Daryl pitches his tent next to theirs once more. But he doesn't look at her and she doesn't talk to him.

##########

A few weeks later Lori rolls on her back with a huff. Carol is sleeping beside her but she's still cold. Carol suffered from the cold too. So their attempts to warm each other were abysmal. She gets to her knees and finds herself crawling out of the tent and toward the fire. Suddenly Daryl is there, hands under her arms as he pulls her back and up.

In his arms before she knows where she is Lori can only blink. "Gotta' take care of yourself and the little one Olive, ain't gonna lose you." But he moves her to the fire where he is on watch and he surprises her by settling her down beside him. He's giving off body heat as if he were a furnace. Lori snuggles in. She doesn't think of how it could look. She is too cold.

An arm drapes around her shoulder and pulls her closer, rocking her gently until she drifts to sleep in Daryl's arms. When she wakes he's still holding her and she is as warm as toast. The camp has stirred around them and gone on. No one has woken her. Or Daryl. Lori realises Daryl is asleep too now. Arm around her and head tilted back against the log he'd been resting on. Lori looks up at his face.

Relaxed in sleep she realises how in a different life Daryl Dixon would be considered enviably handsome. She herself had always loved his eyes. Before she realises what she's doing, there in full view of anyone who was watching Lori reaches up and strokes his cheek softly. He stirs under her touch and before he's fully awoken he nuzzles into her touch with a soft groan.

Lori gasps quietly before she can stop herself, heat pools inside her. Heat she hasn't felt for months. Hasn't wanted to feel for months. Heat she feels now for the man who'd given her the best night's sleep she'd had in years if she was being honest with herself as she espoused to try to be these days.

His eyes flew open and their blazing blue stared down at her silently. Lori doesn't move her hand from his cheek. As he looks at her, Lori sees his eyes move to her lips and stay there. Was he going to kiss her? Lori's own lips part in expectation. And then he speaks, his voice croaky and husky in the cold morning air.

"Playing with fire Olive." Lori's fingers stutter on his cheekbone before they fall away.

She pushes herself up slowly and for once Daryl doesn't help her. She doesn't look around to see who has seen them as she shivers in the chill of not having Daryl's body heat beside her anymore.

Daryl watches her walk back to her own tent and kneel before crawling inside. Woman sure had a set of legs. He shifted uncomfortably as his cock agreed. Shaking his head Daryl stands himself, stretching his kinks out he grabs his crossbow and heads off to take his morning leak.

##########

A couple of days later he's setting up his tent when T approaches, "Hey Daryl, Carol's gonna sleep with me tonight since you've kept Lori warm." Daryl jerks at T's words.

"The fuck?" He questions. T looks at him like he's crazy.

"You got a problem with keeping a pregnant woman and her unborn child from freezing their arses off in winter?" He questions Daryl. Daryl frowns at him. He's sure there is something else going on but he doesn't know what.

"The fuck?" He questions again not knowing what else to say.

"Carol asked me to, said that Lori was saying how warm you were when you slept by the fire a few nights ago and that gave her the idea that they'd be warmer if they split up and stayed with us instead." T's explanation made sense, he'd been wondering how to suggest it himself, though he was just gonna have T and Herschel sleep with them. Not him.

"Herschel or Rick?" He asks bluntly.

"Herschel said he has trouble staying warm himself, that's why he and Beth bunk together and Rick…" T trails off and Daryl knows this meant he hadn't asked him.

"Fuck." He mutters quietly to himself. "Yeah, okay then." T slaps him on the shoulder and wanders off grabbing firewood.

And so it begins. Truth is she's less of a pain to sleep with than he thought a woman ever could be. Daryl thought it would have been different if they were sleeping together in their old lives. Though if they were in their old lives they would have never met in the first place. He waits for Rick to mention what they've taken to doing. To have an issue; but he says nothing.

Several mornings later he wakes to find he's wound himself around her like a fucking vine. His hands grasping her, legs entangled. And he's hard. Harder than he's been since this whole fiasco started with the dead rising and Merle going missing. Daryl freezes, he doesn't know whether to move or to lay there and pretend to be asleep until she wakes and moves away. Fuck, fuck, fuck.

While his mind was racing in circles trying to find a way out Lori snuggled further into him by pressing her hips back and before he can help himself his own jerk forward trying to find better purchase. And Lori wakes up as they nudge her. He feels her still completely in his arms and so he stays with his eyes closed, still pretending to be asleep.

Daryl makes sure his breathing is quiet and even and his body is lax. His arm feels Lori's heartbeat quicken and his own matches it. "Oh God." She whispers quietly. She lays there as he does though she thinks he is asleep. And Daryl realises suddenly she doesn't know what to do either. But they can't stay like this.

"'S biological you know, most men wake-up like it. Don't mean anything." His voice is croaky, but only he knows it's croaky from arousal, not his usual morning roughness.

"I know, I um, I uh." Lori stops speaking with a curse and then squirms around in Daryl's arms to face him. Her belly bumps him but he doesn't move back. Only he has to know that its her, not the fact that its morning making him hard. Looking at him from the other side of the pillow they'd taken to sharing she starts to answer him again. "I know its how men wake-up. I can help you with that if you want. It's the least I could do for all that you do for me."

Daryl pushes away from her so fast she is left floundering. "The fuck?" He is furious. "You think I get that shit for you, look out for you because you're pregnant? And that I need payback. No worse than a whore Merle would fuck." Fuck, Daryl suddenly realises what he'd said. He is up and out the door before Lori and say anything or he can make her cry.


	5. Chapter 5

Daryl rides ahead of the four-wheel drives as always. His mind is a morass today, he's damn lucky he hasn't hit a walker. Taking a hand off his bike he scrubs it over his face. He was a fuckwit, no doubt about it. To call her a pro. She wasn't, she was a woman. And a woman had needs, same as a man. She and Rick had been apart for months now.

And even if she was a single woman he was helping out, it didn't matter. He'd insulted her, been hurtful for no reason. Once he'd have had his cock so far up her at that offer she'd feel him for days. But the days he could pick up a woman, fuck her and leave her in the dead of night are gone. He'll never have that opportunity again. Not that he did it that much anyway. But still.

And a relationship? Daryl's self-deprecating laugh is taken by the wind. Who was he kidding? Himself for one. No way in hell a relationship was gonna grow between him and Olive. Soon as the kid was born Rick was gonna come running, he fucking knew it. Wouldn't matter if the child was his or Shane's. He'd take care of it.

 _But you'd take care of its mother._  Daryl ignores the voice in his head that says taking care of the child is different to taking care of the parent. He knew full well Lori was trying to stand on her own two feet these days. She was doing an admirable job of it given their situation. He admired her. She had guts. Always had had guts. She'd been the one who'd wanted to put up signs to warn people away from Atlanta, no one else had wanted to do that. She would have too if Shane had let her.

She might not be practical sometimes but she was learning, getting better. She was adapting to the world they lived in now. And she was adapting well. And she thought of him. That was the crux of it all. She'd admitted that day at the tents, she thought of him. Sexually.

Shifting on the bike Daryl tries to will himself soft. But the bike itself was a deterrent to that fact when he was thinking of mile long legs and a waterfall of soft brown hair and those wide-set eyes that looked straight through him sometimes.

As they break for lunch Daryl ignores Lori and she ignores him in return. He talks to Rick about how miserable they all are and he stays in T's vehicle that night after his watch taking the front seat while T and Carol stretch as best they can in the back.

Sometime in the early morning before he falls into a light nightmare riddled sleep Daryl makes the decision that he'll apologise to Lori and then he'd see just how much she thought of him. He'd let them develop. Naturally. And if in developing they had an end, well he'd deal with that too.

##########

"God, what I wouldn't pay for a massage." Lori tries to stretch the kinks out of her back and shoulders as she stands outside the Cherokee. Rick absent-mindedly agrees with her as he stretches himself. Carl is bright-eyed and chipper. But then he wasn't yet tall. Lori eyed his short statured frame resentfully even as she knows she's heading for a first class temper tantrum. But she's sick of sleeping in the car, they've done it for ten nights now.

"Me too." Daryl agrees with her as he walks past rolling his shoulders. Lori blinks. He'd spoken to her in front of the others. He usually didn't do that. She found herself smiling after him as she walked to the fire to warm herself and eat some breakfast. She's standing at the back of the Cherokee putting on another sweater when hands land gently on her shoulders.

"Let's see if I can help any. Be grateful if you'd consider it an apology." Daryl runs his thumbs up her neck pushing them into the muscles as he goes and Lori drops the sweater she's holding as she groans outright.

"Geez Lori. Daryl must be good, you sound like you just had an orgasm." Maggie laughs as she walks past. Lori feels herself blush for the first time in years. She tries to move away but Daryl's hands hold her still.

"Ignore her, she's jealous the Chinaman doesn't have hands good enough to satisfy her." Daryl raises his voice so Maggie hears it along with Glenn who protests.

"I have excellent hands thank you very much Daryl." He's about to say something else when Maggie shuts him up with a kiss. Lori finds herself relaxing as Daryl's thumbs ease up and his fingers take over.

"You are het up though. Hot bath'd do you wonders." Daryl says. Lori shivers as she feels his breath ghost across the back of her neck. She closes her eyes allowing herself to fantasize that Daryl's hands aren't purely practical, that he's trying to arouse her, that his touch is a prelude to sex.

She feels herself grow wet, he lips swell and her clit throbs. The moan that slips from her lips is husky and low, the need, her need is clear in it. Daryl's hands pause in their ministrations.

"Don't stop." Lori whispers as she drops her head. After a few seconds Daryl's hands continue to knead and rub and they slide slowly down. All the while he's unknotting the kinks in her neck, her shoulders and her back. But underneath that is the pleasure, pure female pleasure that a man's hands are touching her. No it's not strictly sexual.

But it's also not strictly non-sexual. Daryl's hands don't stop when they get to her jeans. But he stops rubbing. Instead he palms her hips and pulls her back against him. Lori sighs as she feels his hard body come into contact with hers. Along with his cock which is also hard.

"That a pencil in your pocket Popeye?" She questions softly only to shiver as Daryl laughs against her neck.

"Not even close Miz Olive. I'm just right happy to see you is all." Lori's heart skips a beat when she feels the brush of Daryl's lips and the scruff he called a beard on the side of her neck. When Daryl pulls away she feels the cool air on her skin and realises he'd licked her as well.

"Oh God." She says as she feels her clit spasm softly. It's been too long.

"Shh, it's okay I've got you." Daryl's arms slip around her as he holds her through the orgasm. It's mild, but an orgasm nonetheless. "Shh, it's okay. No one can see, its okay." Daryl's murmurs are low and only for her ears. He moves his right hand down and cups her through her jeans. The heat of him makes Lori's eye's flutter. She rides out her orgasm as Daryl continues to keep her hidden from the others. Holding her close, letting her feel his own arousal so it feed's hers. When she calms down Lori turns around to face him.

"I've never," She breaks off not knowing what to say.

"First time I've ever made a woman come by giving her a massage as well." Daryl smiles at her. The smile he shares with no one else Lori realises. He rubs his hands up and down her arms. "You okay, good to go now?" He asks as he looks at her.

Lori nods. "Yes, I'm fine. Better than fine, better than I've been in weeks." She grabs Daryl's forearms when he goes to leave. "Your turn next." She finds herself blushing again for the second time in a matter of minutes as Daryl stills and simply looks at her. His eyes narrow as they then glide over her face before he brings them back up to her own.

"Kinda' partial to your mouth." He says softly as he looks at Lori's lips and then back up into her eyes. Lori swallows as arousal threatens to overwhelm her again. God, the man was, she didn't know what he was other than turning her on like crazy.

She opens her mouth mortified by what comes out. "You trying to make me come again Popeye?" Shit, did she just say that? The wicked smile that Daryl lets free tells her yes, she truly did just say that out loud. And then he nods once and steps back and is gone.

Slumping back against the Cherokee Lori inhales and exhales before she turns and grabs the sweater. She is tugging it on when Carol speaks behind her.

"Did Daryl's massage work? I'd be happy to trade you a massage for a massage if you want?" She asks Lori. Lori rolls her eyes before she turns around to speak to Carol.

Yeah, Daryl's massage had worked, just not in the way or only in the way Carol was asking. "That sounds like a deal. Now or tonight?" Lori asks,

"Well, I'd like to say now but Rick's eager to be on his way, so tonight? After supper?" Lori nods.

"It's a date, we'll give the men a show, strip down and everything." She laughs as Carol does and Herschel walking past surprises them by stopping and answering Lori's statement.

"Well now, I'd pay good money to see that, I might even be able to dig up some oil for you to use." He wiggles his eyebrows at them and almost cringes as Beth hears him and chokes out a scandalised answer.

"Daddy!" She is flushed with embarrassment. Lori can't help herself from laughing out loud. She bends over at the waist, her hands cupping her stomach to support it. She can hear Carol sputtering beside her as well.

"Well Bethie, you didn't think the stork just dropped you off on our doorstep did you?" He asks innocently.

Lori laughs so much at that statement that Beth cannot answer with anything other than a beet-red face that she snorts inelegantly. Carol joins her and Herschel merely looks at them and grins. "It's been way too long since I've laughed like that." Carol says as Herschel moves off and they pack for their daily trek.

"Me too, me too." Lori answers her.

That night they again sleeping in the vehicles.

It is two days later when they find a farmhouse. Off the road and uninhabited well before the world had gone mad by the look of it. But it was isolated and as a result it was clean of walkers and the living. It was several rooms, enough that they can spread out into the pairs they've all settled into. Rick and Carl are now bunking for warmth. Herschel and Beth with Glenn and Maggie. Carol and T and Daryl and her

Daryl surprises her by coming into the room before he takes his night watch. Usually he'd stay out when she turned in. He pauses as he sees Lori undressing in the lantern she has lit. Usually she's in bed and shivering by the time he gets in for the night. Lori keeps herself turned away. She is trying not to shiver but she can't help herself. And she's trying to hide how fat she is.

She hears Daryl sigh and then she feels his hands on her shoulders, massaging again, digging in. Releasing her tension. Letting herself go Lori moans again. And again Daryl kisses the side of her neck bared by her hair being plaited down the other side of her neck. Lori ignores her self-consciousness and leans back on Daryl's warmth.

Brushing her palms back against his thighs she feels him spread his legs a little in invitation so she brushes one hand up and palms him though his pants. Brown jeans he's wearing today she remembers. Kind of baggy, holes in both knees, but somehow, when she sees him in them she can't help but look at his cock as it swings between his legs when he walks. These pants of the three pairs he has showcase him beautifully unlike his other ones.

"You offering your mouth tonight Olive?" Daryl asks her softly as he runs his teeth along the side of Lori's neck, digging them in, making her feel the burn of his whiskers as well.

"I'd be more than happy to Popeye, but I'm a little easy to overbalance so I'll need to lie down." Lori answers with a grimace. Daryl simply smiles and steps back. Lori misses him immediately.

Then she kneels, she's dressed in Daryl's flannel shirt and the long johns he'd managed to procure for her from God knows where. Crawling onto their bedding Lori turns on her back. She watches with hooded eyes as Daryl watches her move and then begins to undress. She can see his erection pushing against his pants.

As he disrobes Lori sees his body for the first time. She is glad Daryl is undressing fully, she instinctively knows he's showing her a level of trust he shows few others, especially women. And that makes her green-eyed monster purr contentedly.

"You sure are handsome Daryl." She says softly and is shocked to see a flush cross those gorgeous cheekbones and move down his neck and across his chest. Lori smiles as he drops his eyes. "Daryl, look at me." Lori says still soft, but in a firmer tone of voice. Undressing fully and standing Daryl kneels and then looks at her.

"You are beautiful, inside and out. Whether you believe it, doesn't make it any less true." Lori says no more on the matter, she can tell by Daryl's flagging cock she's made him uncomfortable. So she draws on something else instead. "Bring me your cock, I want you to come in my mouth." She says baldly. Daryl's cock leaps at her words and she grins at him.

Leaning up on her elbows she extends her neck as Daryl moves toward her on his knees. "Gorgeous." She murmurs as he comes closer. And he is, soft skin, pale and golden in colour. He is smooth, lightly veined and a perfect size. His balls hang low and heavy and Lori leans in under his cock to nuzzle at them, lick at them and kiss them wetly. "God, I want them in my mouth too." She speaks to Daryl. Looking up she sees him watching her in that quiet predatory way he has. "I want to taste all of you Daryl." She is gratified to see his eyes widen in shock before he schools all expression from his face.

"I saw that." Lori laughs.

"Fuckin' slut of a woman, never saw you do that shit to your Deputy now did I?" Daryl questions her abruptly. Instead of feeling scandalised Lori admits something she never thought she would. To anyone, not even Daryl.

"I knew you watched us you know." She sits up suddenly thoughts of sucking Daryl off gone for the time being. "I knew you did, not all the time but sometimes. And it made me hot, made me come. And you're half the reason I kept going out with him when I wanted to stop, because if I stopped I wouldn't see you." Lori bows her head in shame. Shame of what she'd done, how she'd used Shane for her own ends.

"It's my fault he's dead, I let it go on, I gave him hope even at the farm. I told him to stay, for Rick. For Carl, not me. But he took it to mean me. I was so stupid and now he's dead and that's on me. It will always be on me. Carl had to shoot Shane or he would have killed Rick when he turned. And that's on me too." Lori looks up at Daryl.

"Why? Why me?" She asks him. Daryl shrugs. He lies down, his head opposite to Lori's down near her feet.

Sitting there Lori watches him, he looks like he's turning stuff over in his brain, deciding on something. Then he begins to speak. "I saw Atlanta get bombed that night too. Was heading back to get Mer and go to the quarry while we decided what to do, where to go. I'd been down the line, told a few people about it, Ed, Morales." He looks at Lori evenly. "Shane too. People with kids. I knew the highway was going to turn bad sooner or later." Breathing deeply Daryl looks at her and then continues. "I saw you, your first time with Shane. It was your legs that got me. And then it was your shitty personality. Gotta love a woman with sass. Me and Mer had that in common. Though he likes 'em busty and blonde."

Daryl pauses as he looks at Lori, she is just watching him now, but he sees her breathing has settled. "And maybe I'm wired a little differently but I kinda' like the way you look down your nose at me. You think you're bein' smart and superior and all I want to do is fuck the living shit out of you. Paddle your arse until its cherry red and then fuck it until I come all over it." Now Daryl grins at Lori, her breathing has escalated and he can see her nipples have hardened at his words.

"Guess you like the idea of a spanking and an arse fucking Miz Olive. I'll get right on that when I've got the energy." And he laughs. Lori's response is to snake out a hand and grab his cock firmly. Daryl chokes off his laugh to look at her. Shaking her head Lori leans down and manoeuvres on her side.

"You're partial to my mouth, let me put it to use for you Popeye, you can screw my arse another day. Besides," Lori pauses and looks down her nose at him deliberately feeling Daryl's cock jump in her hand as she does so. "Kinky," She mutters before continuing. "You've got watch yet." And then she sucks Daryl's cock into the warmth of her mouth.

Daryl leans back and closes his eyes the better to feel. He can feel Lori's tongue as she swipes him all over, she's licking him like he's a dripping ice-cream cone. He can feel an erect nipple pushing on his thigh through the soft flannel of the shirt they share now. He can feel her hair grazing his legs and the side of his hip.

Reaching out a hand he places it on Lori's thigh, rubbing her softly as he pulls his focus back to her mouth. He'd seen her give Shane head, suck him off. She'd always been hard and fast. She was not doing that now. Not at all. She was licking him, kissing him softly, fuck. She was nipping him as well. One hand was stroking his sac, lightly fingering him. He feels it move back behind his balls to his perineum where she pushes on it lightly. To his shock Daryl feels his arse muscles relax and his cock jump.

His eyes roll behind his lids and he can't help his hips movement now. They're thrusting into her wet mouth. Daryl is mindless with the need to come. To have an orgasm he has not brought upon himself in too long. Suddenly his back arches off their bedding and his eyes shoot open to watch Lori as she swallows his come.

He gets a shock when he realises Lori's own eyes are open and watching him, their eyes stay connected, neither blinking as she sucks and swallows him dry.

Something indefinable passes between them and Daryl realises he has gone far past wanting Lori. He needs her now like he needs his next breath.

"So, are you still partial to my mouth now Popeye?" Lori asks him as she sits up again and wipes it. She goes to lick her fingers clean of some of Daryl's come when he leans up like a shot and grabs them.

Watching her closely he takes them into his own mouth and licks himself off, swallowing himself down. Lori's pupils dilate so fast in want, Daryl feels his own cock jerk.

"More than Olive, more than. Hope you don't mind if I return the favour when I finish my watch tonight?" He questions hoarsely. Lori shuts her eyes for a few seconds and then opens them again looking at Daryl.

"Any woman would be crazy to turn down an offer like that Popeye, even being woken in the dead of a cold night makes that offer acceptable." She smiles and Daryl leans in and kisses her cheek before he stands and begins to dress.

He is shrugging into his shirt when he realises he's turned his back on her. He freezes for a few seconds and then continues on. It was another acknowledgement that he felt something for her. Something unknown and scary, something he'd never felt for another female.

Slipping on his poncho Daryl turns to look at Lori, she is lying down again, under the covers now and watching him silently. He nods at Lori and she nods back reaching to turn down the lantern as Daryl gets to the door. Her words stop him though.

"Hey Daryl?" Lori calls softly.

"Yeah?" He doesn't turn, keeps his hand on the knob of the door.

"You do realise that Popeye and Olive were married right? That they loved each other?" Daryl turns back to Lori.

"Yeah Lori I do." He answers giving her the respect of using her name. He continues as Lori opens her mouth to speak. "I'm okay with that, very okay with that, but are you?" Opening the door Daryl steps out and shuts it quietly behind him. He waits in the hall looking down at the crack of light under the door. It takes a few minutes but he sees it go out and knows Lori has switched off the lantern.

Then he shoulders his crossbow and heads out for his turn at watch.


	6. Chapter 6

Daryl is sitting and eating what passes for breakfast when Lori gets up the next morning. They don't look at each other anymore than normal. When everyone has settled except for Herschel on watch who is aware of the plans, Rick speaks.

"We'll stay here for a couple of days, scout the area, pick through the other properties and that shopping centre we spotted on the map, give us a chance to wash our shit too." He says laconically.

"Sounds good, I'd love the chance to wash our blankets and stuff." Maggie answers. Daryl hears Lori agree.

"All good, I'm gonna check out the game situation." Daryl stands and takes his plate to the counter. Carol tells him to leave it so he shoulders his crossbow, checks his other weapons and walks to the door. As he gets there Lori comes up behind him.

"Daryl, are you okay if I do your washing and stuff? Give you some clean clothes to wear?" She asks. When he turns she smiles privately at him and he finds himself running the fingers of his right hand across his lips. He can still smell her on himself.

Grinning at her Daryl nods. "Be nice to wear something clean for once." He says to her. Lori raises an eyebrow. "What?" He asks her grinning even more. "Just because I ain't got a problem with dirty clothes doesn't mean I prefer 'em to clean clothes you know.' He nearly laughs at her snort of sarcasm.

"Uh huh, sure. Well, regardless you'll have clean clothes tonight Popeye." She strokes a hand down his arm and turns back toward the kitchen. Shaking his head Daryl exits the house.

He remembers how they were with each other this morning when he'd gone back to bed after his watch. How he'd snuck under the blankets and sucked her awake, she'd been so warm and pliant and wet as all get out. He wanted more of that. He wanted to be inside her. He swipes his hand over his mouth again smelling her one last time before he focuses on hunting.

##########

Returning late that afternoon with a piglet across his shoulders Daryl stops at the sight that greets him. His clothes swinging on the line along with his and Lori's bedding and some of her clothes as well. It called to something deep and primal inside him. Shaking his head he stops and watches as Lori finishes taking some dry clothes off the line. She drops them in a basket that must have been in the house then squats slowly to pick it up.

"You right?" he asks her. Lori shades her eyes and looks over at him.

"I'm good, dry clothes are lighter. Oh God. Bacon." She says with a moan that makes him think of her coming in his mouth this morning.

Daryl snorts. "Got to prep it first. And set up somewhere to cook it."

"You're good there, Glenn turned into a monkey and cleaned the chimney this afternoon. He and Beth actually, by the time they were finished they were dirty enough to take cold showers and they discovered something." Lori looks over at him as they walk slowly toward the house. Daryl likes this, talking about their day. He realises Lori is waiting for him to ask what they discovered.

"Yeah?" Is as close as he'll come, too many years of being teased by Merle still haunt him. He doesn't show curiosity or eagerness anymore.

"This place has gas." He stops and stares at her, looks her over with a frown. She doesn't look any cleaner than this morning.

"I didn't, wanted to wait until you got back." Lori answers his unasked question of why she hadn't had a hot shower or bath.

"Don't think we can manage a bath together Olive." Daryl says though he wants nothing more.

"I know, but we can take one after the other and go to bed together tonight. Rick's left you off watch just for tonight he said." Lori says no more and Daryl wonders what it cost her to say Rick's name to him. It was none of his business and he needed to make her understand that.

"So anyway," Lori continues before Daryl can think of what to say, "If I dump these in our room, can I watch you prep little piggy?"

"Why?" Daryl stops to look at her.

Lori looks down at the ground then up at Daryl. "Andrea was right about one thing she said at the farm. Doing housework and cooking is good and all, but I need to know more." She looks over at Daryl as they get to the steps of the house. "I want you to teach me, I want to be an asset. I can't do much at the moment, but if you show me what to do I can take that job off your shoulders, or help you with it when you get back or something. I already know how to shoot. When bump finally comes into the world I'll be asking for fighting lessons too." She hefts the basket of laundry and walks up the steps and into the house leaving Daryl staring after her.

Shaking his head he turns away heading to the side of the house. Even pregnant and getting more so every day her legs were still do die for. Grabbing the chamois pack he'd left on the porch this morning he heads back to the treeline and the bench that he'd asked T to set there. He drops the piglet on the table and rolls opens the pack to reveal his skinning knives.

And he waits. Several minutes later he watches as Lori exits the house and moves down the stairs toward him. She is moving steadily is slower these days. "How far along are you now anyway?" He asks her as she comes up to him with a smile.

"Herschel says about six and a half months." She answers as she rubs her hands over her stomach soothingly. It makes Daryl look at her belly and he's surprised to see it press out quickly before it becomes the hard smooth ball he's used to again.

"Jesus, was that?" He looks up at Lori in shock. She grins at him.

"Yes it was, feels like she's playing football today, here." She takes Daryl's hand before he can step back and presses his palm to the place where the foot had made itself known. After several seconds he feels another kick.

"Jesus!" He says again, pressing on her stomach a little he feels another one. "Not fucking gentle is she?" He questions. Laughing this time Lori shakes her head.

"Not at all. Carl was way worse though. Which is why I think this one is a girl." She looks down at the knives and reaches out a finger to slide over the handle of the filleting knife. A thought strikes him and he looks at her.

"Six and a half months means its Shane's." He says it simply and with no rancour. He sees Lori's fingers stutter on the handle of the knife.

"Yes. It would never have been his of course if he had lived, but yes, he's the co-creator of my bump. We were careful, obviously not careful enough." Shaking her head and taking a deep breath Lori looks over at him. Daryl realises he's still got a palm on her stomach. He pulls it back and then looks down at the knives.

'You sure about this Olive?" He asks as he gestures to the knives and piglet. "Gets messy you know." Lori merely nods.

"There isn't really anything in this world that isn't messy anymore Daryl." She says in return.

"Fair enough then. No upchucking now." And so Daryl begins to teach Lori how to skin and dress game for the table. He gives her a lesson in the knives he uses as well and when they've finished with the piglet and he's started it on to roast he then takes her through cleaning and sharpening the knives. Lori realises it's almost an art.

The way you slide the knife through skin and flesh, making sure to miss the gut bag, not pierce any intestines, sliding it between this and that, peeling off the skin. It was indeed an art. And one that didn't make her vomit. When they're having dinner that evening it gives her more of a sense of accomplishment to know that she'd done more than cook it, or help cook it rather.

But now she really needs that shower. There is a relaxed atmosphere around the table this evening. Everyone is enjoying under a roof and the peace and quiet it brings. Lori has made up her and Daryl's bed tonight with clean bedding and she can't wait to slide into it once she's clean herself.

Eventually she feels herself beginning to flag so she says goodnight and tells Daryl she's off to shower, he nods and Lori heads back to their room. She gathers up her toiletries and moves to the bathroom. Carol had scrubbed out the bathroom when the hot water had been discovered. Closing but not locking the door Lori strips while the water heats up. She scrubs herself down with soap and a washer and then washes her hair as well. She should do it in the morning but it's too itchy and she really wants to be a hundred percent clean when she gets into bed tonight.

There is a knock at the door as she's dressing. "Yes?" She calls out.

"Me, you decent, can I clean my teeth?" Daryl asks her. Lori opens the door. She's wrapped in a towel with Daryl's flannel shirt and another towel wrapping her hair.

"Yes, nearly done anyway." Daryl leaves the door open so anyone can see they're not doing anything untoward. Lori realises they need to talk about whether they're telling people. She doesn't want to hide Daryl but she also doesn't want to tell people. She wants to be selfish. But she decides to leave it up to Daryl. She grabs up her dirty clothes and then waits while Daryl cleans his teeth and strips and she takes his dirty clothes too. She smiles at Beth as she walks past and she smiles back.

"More washing tomorrow." Beth says as she passes. "Night Lori, night Daryl."

"Night Beth." Lori returns and Daryl merely grunts. Lori smiles as she takes all his clothes and heads back to their room. She dumps them on the floor just inside the door and then grabs the cream she usually hoards and moisturises herself. She feels heat pool deep inside her body as she thinks of Daryl waking her with his mouth on her last night.

Crawling into their bedding Lori takes off the towel from her hair and brushes it out. When Daryl comes in wearing nothing but a towel Lori drinks him in. She's left two lanterns going and she can see him clearly. His taut skin, hardened muscles and moles, freckles, tattoos and scars. He was beautiful.

Taking her towel Daryl hangs it off the bed frame and then takes off his own and hangs it as well. His backside is firm and Lori wants nothing more than to bite it. Daryl glances over his shoulder at her and Lori nearly flushes as she realises she'd said that out loud.

"Do I have to worry about you turning into a Walker Olive?" He asks on a huff of laugher. Lori drops her brush and places her face in her hands in embarrassment.

"Hormones." She says. She knows it's not true, but she'll take any excuse she can get at the moment. God, she'd told Daryl she wanted to bite his butt. She was so far gone it wasn't even funny. She hears Daryl snort a laugh again and then he sits down behind her, his bare legs straddling her hips. His hand scoops up the brush and he starts to brush her hair.

"Oh God, you don't have to, I'm so glad that you are, but you don't have to and I'm shutting up now in case you decide to stop." Lori says. Her hair stirs from more of Daryl's soft laughter. They sit like that for what feels like hours as Daryl brushes her hair letting it dry slowly. Their room is actually reasonably warm. Being right next to wall with the fireplace in the living room they're getting some of its heat.

Eventually her hair is nearly dry and Daryl stops brushing it. Lori leans back on his warm chest as he leans down and kisses the side of her neck he'd just bared to him. The softest of moan drifts from her mouth. His lips are soft despite their chapped skin from the cold of winter. His breath is warm and his tongue is wet.

Licking a trail up to her ear Daryl nips at the lobe lightly making Lori wriggle back against him. She feels his hard cock brush against their shirt and goes to reach for it. Daryl stops her. "Not yet woman." He says quietly. Pushing Lori forward slightly he then starts to rub her neck and shoulders through the flannel shirt they now share. The muscles are slightly loosened by the hot water and his manipulations finish the job.

Massaging down her back Daryl relaxes her lower back muscles as well until finally Lori feels like a limp noodle. Another soft laugh makes her realise she's said that out loud as well. Dammit. "God, I'm going to have to watch my mouth around you Daryl, you make me so comfortable I don't think before I speak."

"Never have to watch what you say around me Lori, never. Remember I like your shitty personality. Then you can leave off worrying." Pulling back a little Daryl moves back and then pulls their blankets down, rolling them until they're at the foot of the bed. "Lie down now." Lori lies down watching as Daryl moves one lantern and switches it off. The other he turns down but leaves on. Then he kneels between Lori's bent legs.

"Want to fuck you Olive, you up for that? Don't know if you can, carrying a second person and all." Lori nods.

"I can, just need to be careful and a bit slower is all. I want you Daryl, inside me. I want you to come inside me." Closing her eyes Lori opens them knowing what she feels for Daryl is swimming in their depths. "I've wanted you for so long." She tries to sit up and reach for Daryl but can't so holds out a hand that Daryl unhesitatingly takes.

He looks down at their intertwined fingers before he speaks. "Don't know what we have woman, but I'm along for the ride wherever it takes us, even if it takes you back to Rick." He doesn't know what else to say to let Lori know that he'll allow that to happen. Wasn't like he could kidnap her and cart her off to keep forever, though the caveman in him wanted to do exactly that.

"Even this?" Lori asks, smoothing her other hand over the child, Shane's child that she carried.

"Yeah, bump too." Daryl calls the baby what Lori calls it and she smiles. "If we make it I'd be planting more of them in you, just so you know." He says as Lori just gapes at him.

"You want children? I mean, children with me?" She is incredulous that Daryl has even thought of children though she knows damn well she shouldn't be. He'd already said he told people with children about the quarry, no one else. Other's had found it of course, but still.

"If we make it that far yeah. Like I said last night I do know that Popeye and Olive were married and in love, do you remember that they had a child Lori?" Daryl asks her discerningly. Lori does flush this time.

"Yes Daryl I do. And okay then if we're doing this then 'this' includes children," she says making a quote mark with her one free hand. The smile Daryl gifts her with is not one she has ever seen before. It is breathtaking. His eyes crinkle at her even as the blue in them seems to explode in a firestorm of colour, it fractures Lori's heart with its beauty. The openness in his expression leaves no room for doubt.

And so she accepts that she and Daryl are something that will continue. Even though he's making plans she knows if Rick somehow wants her back and she even accepts him Daryl won't blame her, he won't cause an issue, but he's fighting for her Lori knows. His every word, his every expression that she and she alone sees is a fight, he is letting her in as he lets no one else in. He is letting her know he is worthy. But, Lori suddenly realises, she's not worthy of him.

"I'm, Daryl I'm not worthy of you."

"Don't be fuckin' stupid." He says nothing more, leaning over her instead and taking her mouth in a kiss so erotic Lori nearly comes from the pleasure of it alone. Lori forgets her doubts and fears as Daryl's tongue snakes into her mouth, over her own, slides over her teeth and then fucks in and out of her so slow she simply melts into a puddle of arousal underneath him.

"Daryl, God. Yes." Is all she can say. Again she feels Daryl snort a soft laugh, this time she catches his breath with her own mouth. And she does come. Mildly like she had standing by the Cherokee but an orgasm nonetheless, it ripples through her gently and Lori feels Daryl's hands slide up her body now. "Daryl," Lori says again, "Touch yourself, I want to see you touch yourself for me." Lori looks up as Daryl pulls back to look at her with a raised brow. Then without saying anything further he sits back and takes his hard cock in his hand. And still looking at Lori, his eyes blazing at her he begins to jerk himself off.

Back and forth, his hand strokes his cock, slow and steady. Lori alternates between watching his face and watching his hand on his cock. She licks her lips as she sees his pre-come drip slowly out of his slit. "You like watchin' me? You wanna taste me again?" His questions are breathless as he continues to stroke himself off. Over and over his hand moves on his beautiful hard cock. Lori feels heat pool between her legs and flow out.

She wants to push her hand down under their shirt and flick her fingers over herself until she comes as well. Even better, she wanted Daryl's rough fingers stroking the wet sensitive skin of her clit until she spasms around him in orgasm.

"Answer me Olive." His words are even more breathless, Lori can see his stomach and hips working toward orgasm. His stomach is moving, rippling in need and she finds that sight almost sexier than the sight of Daryl's hand still stroking himself off, slow and steady, working himself without any rush toward an orgasm she will watch.

"Yes." It is all Lori can say, she has no idea what the question even was. She hears Daryl laugh lightly at her though.

And as he laughs his head drops back, his eyes closing and Lori sees him swallow, his Adam's apple moving up and down and come drops out of his cock, splattering over Lori's thighs where they're spread around Daryl. Daryl's hand on his cock slows down as his orgasm recedes and he relaxes his body.

Lori is panting uncontrollably, before she realises what she's doing she pushes her hand under her shirt and into herself. She is wet and slippery and her eyes flutter when her fingers touch her clit. She is so aroused its like a hard little pea under her touch, standing out from under its hood, wanting and needing to be stroked.

Without realising it Lori is whimpering in need. Suddenly she feels something at her lips and her mouth opens before she even realises what is touching her. Fingers, she sucks on Daryl's fingers, licking and scraping them with her teeth. His taste explodes across her senses and she moans around the fingers in her mouth. Lori opens her legs and spreads herself wide.

"Beautiful Olive, just beautiful." Lori barely hears Daryl's whispered words to her. She moans again around his fingers still inside her mouth as his other hand slides inside her, fucking her as she still slides her own fingers across her clit.

"Please." Lori whimpers around Daryl's fingers, she is asking to come. Asking for Daryl to help her come, let her come.

Daryl's fingers are gone from her mouth, leaving her feeling bereft and then she opens her eyes to see Daryl move between her thighs. His cock is hard again and in his hand. He leans over her bracing himself on one hand and slowly, paying attention to the child between them he pushes inside her. Lori can do nothing more than hang on and wait for his cock to enter her.

Surprising her again as soon as he has seated himself, Daryl's arms move underneath her body and pull her up carefully. Then he kneels up straight and Lori finds herself seated on his thighs. "Comfortable Olive?" Daryl asks her as he steadies her and settles himself inside her.

Lori smiles. "Yes Popeye, I'm comfortable, I'll be even better when you make me come." One eyebrow rises in amusement or sarcasm she isn't sure.

"Since when does Popeye 'make' anyone do anything?" Daryl questions breathlessly as he lies down and pushes his legs up. Now Lori was straddling Daryl and his knees were bent behind her so she could rest her back on them. This was infinitely more comfortable.

Dropping his hands from touching Lori, he puts them behind his head as he looks up at her. Lori knows he's up to something but she has no idea what. Daryl's eyebrow raises again as he looks and smiles at her. "Well?" He questions almost querulously, "Ain't got all day."

Oh God, he meant for Lori to get herself off on him. Taking a breath Lori leans back on Daryl's raised knees, she puts her arms back, wrapping them around his thighs to anchor herself and she slowly raises herself off his cock and then lowers herself again.

As she sinks back down she finds herself groaning softly. "Can't make any noise Olive, don't want the other's to know you're balllin' Popeye now do you?" Daryl questions her quietly. Lori shakes her head though right now she doesn't give a shit. Carl could walk in on her and she wouldn't stop, she is too far gone, she can't stop. Daryl's cock is hot and hard inside her and she can feel it swelling and throbbing in need as well.

"Good staying power." She comments breathlessly. Daryl laughs lightly.

"All you sweetheart." Lori blinks.

"Touch me." Her voice is plaintive.

"Where?" Daryl asks. He has no experience with pregnant women, he has no idea if sex is different in any way.

"Clit." Is all Lori can say as she starts to move up and down on his cock trying to find a rhythm. Daryl unhooks a hand from behind his head and slides it down his torso. Lori watches it move hungrily. And then he is under the swell of her abdomen and his fingers are threading through her curls until he scrapes a nail across her clit making her jump.

"Oh God, yes." She says as she clenches down on him tightly. Daryl starts to thrust up as she drops down. And so they begin. Slow and steady Lori feels her body tighten as her toes curl and cramp from the position they're in. But she won't move until she has come. She groans without realising and Suddenly Daryl is sitting up, his mouth catches hers.

Lori's mouth opens for his tongue and Daryl swallows her next groan, muffling her. His other hand winds through the hair on her head, before sliding down her back. Her hair falls around them when he lets it go, cocooning the two of them.

Other hand still on her clit Lori's breath hitches in Daryl's mouth as her orgasm explodes out from her. He muffles her groans as she comes and Lori in turn muffles his groans when he tightens and releases inside her. She unwinds her hands from Daryl's legs and winds them around his shoulders, holding him to her tightly.

As her breathing slowly evens out, Lori relaxes. Daryl laughs as she allows him to simply push her off him and onto her side as he gets them both under the covers, pulling them up and settling them down on the pillow together. Lori feels completely boneless.

They sleep peacefully in the warmth of their room.

##########

The next morning Daryl wakes and dresses, he's putting on his boots when Lori stirs.

"Morning." She says as she sits up sleepily.

"Morning Olive." Daryl says to her. He leans over and kisses her thoroughly not letting Lori away from what she calls morning breath. He laughs at her instead. Sliding a hand down her torso Daryl pushes a finger inside her, eager for a taste of her to start his day with.

Pulling back he withdraws his hand smiling at her moan of displeasure. He sucks it into his mouth still looking at Lori. Metallic. He tastes metal. Pulling his finger out he can see the faintest bit of pink around his nail.

"Fucking cunt of a cocksucking whore." His words are vile and make Lori jump. Daryl tears the blankets off her without saying anything further and pushes her on her back spreading her legs.

"Daryl!" She protests but he ignores her, his fingers pushing in and out of her again quickly. Before Lori can curse at him he raises them to her eyes. "Oh God." Tears water her eyes as she holds her child still in her womb.

"You hurting? Cramps or anything?" Lori shakes her head. Daryl nods. "I'm gonna wake Herschel." He pulls his own pants closed and fastens them as he stands, wiping her blood on the side of them.

"He'll know." Lori says as his hand touches the doorknob.

He stops but doesn't turn back. "Ain't got a problem with it, less you do?" He questions her without turning around, standing facing the door and waiting for her answer. His shoulders are hunched.

"No, I don't have a problem with it." Daryl nods and his shoulders straighten as he opens the door and closes it behind him quietly. Lori waits for him to bring back Herschel.

##########

Daryl is pacing outside the bedroom door when Herschel opens it and motions him inside. Lori is standing and dressed. She smiles at him. Daryl looks back at Herschel.

"Its fine, but no more intercourse, you'll have to be creative." Herschel smiles as he says this and exits the room leaving them alone together.

Not knowing whether he should do or say anything Daryl has any decision taken from him when he finds his arms full of a tall, leggy, crying pregnant woman. His own arms return her hug and against his will his head drops to nuzzle the top of hers. "Fuck." He mutters quietly.

"Seconded Popeye." Lori says in a choked voice. "I don't know that I could survive losing this baby after everything. As horrid as it's going to be, I need for her to survive." Something leaps in Daryl's chest at her words. He wonders what she's not saying.

"You'll survive Olive, you're a tough one." He says trying to mimic Popeye. It's woeful but it does the trick. Lori laughs. "When is he gonna check you again?"

"A week, unless the bleeding gets worse. I need to up my protein as well." Daryl nods, protein is iron.

"Got it, gonna be okay for me to go huntin'?" Lori nods.

"Yes, I've got more washing to do and I thought I'd see if anyone else wanted their knives sharpened, you know for the practice." Daryl looks at her. She was strong, she'd be alright and if she wasn't well, he'd be on up there in JC's face if she wasn't and that was all there was to it.

"Sounds good to me." Kissing her forehead Daryl takes a breath and leaves her for the day.


	7. Prison

**Prison**

Daryl walks slightly ahead of Rick along the railroad tracks. He's seeing some sign that he's thinking about launching a full hunt for if they can spare the time. The herds they've tried to get around the past few months have made looking for larger game a joke. And then he sees it. As Rick does. But where he sees something to avoid Rick sees potential.

And so they take a look and Rick has a plan. Of course he does. Daryl looks at the prison and thinks maybe he's right but he's not convinced yet. But still he goes along with it. Holding to Rick's plan, Lori opens the gate, closing it behind him and latching it, she then goes and starts picking off what Walkers she can. Whey the take the yard and they're all walking into it for the first time, their arms slide over each other as Lori passes through in front of Daryl. He smiles as he thinks of their past months together.

They'd been normal for the most part. And when summer had arrived again they'd discussed it and stopped sleeping together not ready for others to know. He knew she'd wear it happily but he wasn't sure yet. Didn't know how the fuck Rick would react so was leaving it until bump was born.

Bump, who the fuck would've thought that he'd be calling an unborn child bump and wanting to plant more of his own bumps in the woman carrying it? He didn't. Had never thought that the hard on he had for a pissy personality and long legs would develop into anything beyond a mild obsession.

Later that evening she tries to talk to Rick. Daryl watches her as he thinks of what Carol had asked. Had he and Lori truly hidden their relationship? As he rolls over on his side he sees Lori looking at him. Its summer, she's not cold. She doesn't need him to keep her warm. But she needs him. He can tell. And he needs her. Jerking his chin at her he watches that one in a million smile flash on and off her face before she mouths one word at him. Only one. But it makes him grin. Popeye. He finds himself mouthing back Olive. They close their eyes and sleep.

##########

A few days later Lori watches Rick walk away. She rubs her face against the flannel shirt she continues to wear. It doesn't smell anything like Daryl anymore but she still thinks of it as his. They'd shared it several times during the winter. It had taken a few weeks for him to admit he liked having her smell on him. She had no compunction about admitting the same thing to him. She missed sleeping with him. She missed being with him.

Tears prick her eyes. Tears of sorrow yes, but tears of relief as well, of joy. Because she is free. Looking down at her fingers Lori slides her wedding and engagement rings off as she stands there looking down at the sight in the yard. It's a sight she hopes to see every day for the rest of whatever life she has left. Taking her locket off, she opens it and slides the rings on and then puts it back around her neck. That will do for now.

Later that evening as the sun sets she walks out along the fence line with dinner for Daryl. He takes it from her and eats as he looks out at the forest. "We're through." Lori says simply. Though she immediately realises what a complete and utter cock-up she's just made of things. "Rick, Rick and I." She amends quickly.

Daryl surprises her by huffing a laugh around the food in his mouth. "I figured when I saw you take your rings off up on the walkway." He stopped and looked at her as he licked his fingers clean. Lori had stopped bothering with utensils when he was on watch or out and about when she brought him food. He'd never said anything but she knew he was amused that Carol still did it as did Beth when she brought him his dinner.

"You ready for people to know then?" He asks quietly as he continues to eat. Lori nods.

"I've been ready, it's when you're ready Daryl." She answers softly so her voice doesn't carry in the quiet of the night.

"You don't want to wait until bump's born then?"

Lori shrugs. "No, but if you do that's fine. She's yours now, not Shane's so it's your choice." She looks uncertain now. "Unless you've changed your mind?" She questions him.

Daryl simply reaches out his greasy hand and yanks on her braid pulling her in close, or as close as they can with a baby literally between them. "Don't be fucking stupid." He says before his mouth covers hers. Lori winds her arms around his neck and kisses him back.

She feels his greasy hand move around to hold the back of her neck and she doesn't care. He was hers and she was his, grease stains and all. Daryl pulls away as he hears footsteps and Lori sucks gently on his thumb as he cups the side of her face briefly resting his thumb on her lips. His very faint groan was music to her ears. She smiled as he pulled back and handed her his now empty plate.

##########

A few days later it is Lori outside as dusk falls. She lets the night slide over her as she smells nothing but blood. God, Herschel had nearly died today. He'd nearly been taken. And now, how was he going to help her? Her heart quaked at the thought she wouldn't survive the birth of bump. God, she had something more to live for, she did, something beautiful.

The night wraps around her much like the arms sliding around her waist. He pulls her back, cupping her stomach lovingly as he does so. She never thought she'd think of the word love and Daryl in the same sentence but here she was, doing just that. And he was loving, irritated, sarcastic, standoffish, mutinous, dangerous, funny, sly and still loving.

She loved him and she'd take him for however long she had left. Ignoring the tears wanting to burst forth Lori turns in Daryl's arms and heedless of anyone who could see she hugged him for all she was worth.

##########

"Maggie, you have to." Lori speaks through clenched teeth.

"No Lori, I'm not, I'll kill you." Maggie obstinately refuses. "You hang on, we'll get you back to Daddy, he'll get this baby out of you and keep you alive." She looks at Lori and Lori see's the desperation. She can't force Maggie, she knows it.

The pain tries to rip her apart again. She knows it's not going right, she can feel it. She looks at Carl. He is crying. "Baby, don't cry. I'll be okay." He hugs her and she hugs him back despite the pain of another contraction pushing through her.

"Mum!" He is almost in pain as she is at the thought he may lose her.

Suddenly Maggie is around the room like a wraith on a mission. She is back minutes later as Lori labours through a contraction again. "Carl. Let's go, we gotta kill what's out there so we can get your mother back to Daddy, no prisoners okay?" She questions firmly.

Carl stands and nods through his tears. Maggie hands him a hammer while she keeps a wrench for herself in one hand and a chisel in the other. Carl looks at her and in his other hand he takes his knife. He nods at Maggie and she nods back.

Lori can no more stop them than fly. She moans as quiet as she can through another contraction and watches them leave. Five more contractions pass before they're back, both covered in blood and flesh. Neither bitten.

Carl takes point as Maggie supports her as best she can. And they make their slow torturous way back to the main part of the prison. They have to stop frequently for Lori's contractions.

##########

Daryl's heart is knocking against his ribs. Lori, he couldn't find Lori. They'd shut off the alarms. But Lori was missing. A scream suddenly echo's and he feels his bowls turn to water. Herschel swings past him faster than he thought he could ever move, never mind that he was on crutches. Carl flies out of a doorway calling for Herschel and he grabs him as he and Herschel follow him back.

She is in labour and it's not going well. Following Herschel's instructions Daryl picks her up, nearly dropping her as a contraction contorts her frame. He ignores Herschel's words to her as he looks down at her. "Gonna be fine Lori, Vet here is gonna fix you right on up. Hold on now." He watches her blind eyes focus on him and recognise him.

"Popeye." She says. Just the one word but Daryl smiles.

"She's incoherent." Herschel sounds worried.

"No, its what she calls me, she's fine." Daryl answers. Herschel nods.

They settle her on a table out in the open so Herschel can move around her without any trouble. Beth had disinfected it. And then before Daryl can turn away she has grabbed his hand. "Don't leave me."

Stroking her hair back from her face he stands beside her. And then in front of everyone he leans over and kisses her on the lips. "Ain't goin' anywhere." He says no more, he doesn't have to. Lori reaches her other hand for him and Daryl grasps it too. He smiles when he sees her empty finger and leans down and kisses it.

He thought he'd seen a lot but seeing Herschel cut Lori open nearly killed him. Daryl tucked the baby girl in his arms as she bawled. He jiggled her like he'd done with relatives children over the years and sucked his pinky finger clean, digging his teeth under the nail before he dipped it into her open mouth. "Sure got a set of lungs on you don't you my baby asskicker?" He asked her with a smile.

Lori had passed out when Herschel had cut her open but she was still there. He watched as Herschel stitched her up and Beth and Carol cleaned up the rest of her. She'd come through, he knew it. She was strong, his woman.

He realises Rick is standing beside him with Carl. "Can we see her?" Carl asks. Daryl hands her to Carl as he looks at Rick.

"Congratulations." Rick says as he strokes a finger down the baby's cheek. He smiles and looks at Daryl again. "Congratulations." He puts his hand out and Daryl shakes it. They say no more. They don't need to.

"Daryl?" Herschel finally looks up having finished stitching. He lets Carol and Beth bind Lori's wound.

"Yeah?" Daryl moves to Lori immediately.

"It's okay, she's fine, we've got antibiotics to make sure there isn't any infection. Barring anything more complicated she should be just fine, though she won't want to laugh for a while yet." Herschel motions to the baby who is still crying. "You need to get her fed." Daryl frowns.

Herschel looks at Daryl, "You and Lori are together, you should be the one to feed the baby, with Lori's milk." He says.

Daryl nods. Turning he takes the baby from Carl and brings it to the table where they're going to keep Lori for the night so Herschel can check her easily. He sits on one of the cemented in stools and lifts the sheet exposing Lori's breasts. She's still small despite them being full of milk. Beth leaned over and pushed on Lori's other shoulder raising her and moving her breast so Daryl could move the baby's mouth over the nipple.

It took several tries before they succeeded but when they did, the silence was absolute in the evening of the prison. Just the wind in the trees, not even any Walkers could be heard in that moment.

And Daryl knew perfection.

##########

"There we go, bet this is gonna feel good." Daryl sits Lori in the plastic chair he'd put in the shower block. He turned on the water, just a drizzle and let it seep down over Lori's head and body.

"Oh God, that feels amazing. Though I do wish it was warmer, but beggars can't be choosers." Lori answers as she tilts her head back letting the water stream over her greasy and tangled hair.

Herschel hadn't let her move for some time afraid of her tearing her stitches. And then he wouldn't let her bathe. Lori knew she smelled like a Walker herself now, just as she knew Daryl didn't care. And she knew she couldn't put a price on that.

Daryl having stripped himself down now, lets her hair get wet and then steps into the spray letting it out a little more so it splatters down on Lori and bounces off her onto him now. He takes up the shampoo Carol had put out for them and squeezes a liberal amount on her head before he begins to massage it in. He grins and feels his cock jerk as Lori moans at his scratching her scalp.

"Cool it Olive, gonna make 'em think I'm fucking you." He says with a laugh. And he flinches at the slap she gives his thigh, high on his thigh. "Careful now, don't want to damage your favourite part of me."

"It's not my favourite part of you Popeye, not even close." Lori answers as she uses the soap trailing down her body to scrub her face and neck and then her arms. She takes the cake of soap Daryl hands her as he rinses her hair and then shampoos it again.

"Yeah?" What is then?" He asks. Lori smiles and stays silent. Daryl doesn't pester her for an answer. He knows she'll tell him sooner or later.

He finishes washing her, scrubbing her down being careful of her torso. He stands her up and washes between her legs last and then he lets her stand and hold onto his shoulders as he rinses her off in full. She refuses to sit again when he steps back to wash himself. Standing she reaches for the shampoo.

"Think I'm going to let you get away without washing that mop think again." She says firmly. So Daryl holds her while she shampoos his hair as well. As he rinses off he looks at her from under his lashes. It's a sexy look, he wants her even though he knows he can't have her. But she should still know that he wants her.

"Your mouth." She finally answers what her favourite part of him is.

And Daryl smiles at her with that mouth before he uses it on her. Lori's moans echo off the shower walls by the time he's finished. Rising Daryl leans in and kisses her, Lori tastes herself on him and she moans. "God, Daryl, I will never get enough of you." She wraps her arms around his wide shoulders, sliding them up to his neck and into his hair.

"Same goes Olive, same goes. Now lets get you back to bed. Herschel told me I couldn't take too long. He's liable to come looking." Lori snuffs a laugh but still hisses in pain. Laughing is going to hurt for some time.

"Yes, I've got a baby to feed and you've got a family to feed." Lori answers. She lets Daryl dry her and help her dress. And then she just watches as he dries himself and dresses. "I can't wait to have sex with you again, I want you inside me so bad." She says out of nowhere and flushes as she sees Daryl's cock jerk at her words.

"I want to be there, fuck you, make you come, watch you as I come inside you." Lori feels herself moisten at Daryl's words.

"You still want more kids with me Daryl?" She asks as he slides an arm around her, letting her walk back this time, but slow.

"Yeah Olive, as many as Herschel says you can have. He's already said you can have more." He stops and looks at her. "Unless you've changed your mind?"

Lori shakes her head, "No, I want kids with you Daryl, as many as I can have too. Carl and Judith need siblings, this world needs people to survive."

Daryl laughs. "So you're gonna be a broodmare then huh? Fucking sexy one you are too woman." He laughs louder at Lori's pathetic punch, sobering when she winces due to the pull on her muscles.

"We need to get you strong and fit, fighting fit. You still wanting that?" Daryl asks as they walk slowly.

"Yes, I still want that, let's see what Herschel says."

"Sounds good to me Olive, sounds good to me." They walk back their cell block and their room. Carl is lying down with Judith between him and the wall of their cot.

They both smile at the sight. He wakes and leaves them with her.

Their baby.


	8. Chapter 8

Lori laughs at Herschel's disgust. "I did warn you Herschel."

"Yes Lori you did, I have to say you did warn me. I still find it hard to believe that you can parent children and still manage to kill plants, but now I see it with my own eyes." Lori laughs again.

She runs her palm over her protruding stomach and shakes her head. Her braids shake with her. She's wearing plaits today. A whistle pierces the air and without turning she reaches out and grabs Judith on the fly, turning to walk to the gates. She watches Daryl and Carl come toward the prison, they'd been checking the snares.

Carl had had trouble with her and Daryl, mainly because he thought Daryl was going to try to parent him too. Daryl had taken him outside one day and they'd talked, she didn't know about what. Neither would tall her. Lori was okay with that though because things eased after it.

She lets Judith down and she scampers to Daryl who shoulders his crossbow and leans down grabbing her on the fly. "Daddy!" Her squeal says it all. Carl shakes his head and jogs forward.

"All good." He says as he passes her. He's not as physically affectionate anymore and Lori mourns that. She watches him head on inside, no doubt for a shower. He liked to be clean, her boy.

An arm slides over her stomach and up under her breasts, pulls her back. Lori leans on Daryl as he nuzzles her neck and then she feels little hands pushing on her and she laughs knowing Judith was seeking his attention. "Mine!" She says gleefully, grabbing Daryl's beard and pulling. Lori laughs again.

Later that night she slides into bed with Daryl already there, leaning back, hands behind his head. He was waiting for her she knew. Lori leans over him, her breasts hanging and fuller with pregnancy. "Missed you." She says softly as she leans down and kisses him.

"Missed you too Olive." He answers as he opens his mouth under hers. They kiss softly. Then less softly. Daryl slides down in the bed kissing and sucking as he goes. Lori turns on her back with his help and spreads her legs. Then she grabs Daryl's hair.

"Get your cock up here boy." Daryl tips an imaginary hat.

"Ma'am, yes ma'am." He answers as he shuffles around in the bed and straddles her head, his cock hanging hot and heavy in her face. Lori sucks on his head and he pushes his face between her thighs, rubs his beard on them knowing she loves the roughness. His tongue slides along her lips, opening them to push inside. Then his fingers push inside her and Lori moans around his cock.

Sucking and licking at Daryl she pushes her hips up on his face even as she pulls his down, she takes all of him in, relaxing her throat she suckles on him as if he were a teat. He moans now and Lori smiles. And then his tongue flicks at her clit. And again. His fingers slip and slide inside her wetness and Lori wants nothing more than Daryl's cock in there.

But Herschel had forbidden intercourse from her sixth month of pregnancy.

Eyes closing in pleasure Lori opens herself to her orgasm, letting it roll through her as she sucks harder and firmer now on Daryl's cock. He pushes down her throat as she opens her eyes to see his balls draw up just as he explodes down her throat. Lori swallows him down.

A month later she is propped on a table again, this time hoping for a natural birth. Herschel had said if she couldn't give birth naturally this time she shouldn't have anymore children. And Lori already knew she and Daryl wanted lots of children. Despite the harshness of life now, they wanted a large family.

She manages a natural birth, barely. No complications. And Liam comes into the world.

##########

Daryl watches Lori walk toward him, long legs and less pissy personality these days. She grabs a knife and begins to cut and he grins at her. He could never take for granted that she was happy to help him with blood and guts. She didn't have the aptitude to hunt but she was more than happy to help with the messy shit afterward. Couldn't put a price on that, especially these days.

And fight? Yeah, she'd learned to fight, and she'd taken his lessons to heart. He'd never forget the time Rick had accidentally snuck up on her about six months after she'd started taking lessons. She way she'd flipped him had made Daryl hard as a rock. He'd fucked her hard and fast that night. He thinks that was when Liam was conceived.

And now they had Easy as well. He admitted he didn't know why he'd named their daughter that. It felt right. Just like Liam had felt right. Lori had looked at him and just shrugged and nodded.

Everyone else had given him hell and he knew she'd copped it too but she'd stuck with him. They were a team she said when he'd asked her why she'd let him name her that. Easy was anything but. She was a cantankerous child. No other word for it. The only person she took to was Carl.

They were damn lucky he'd taken to her as well. Because he had, he let her run him ragged. Daryl knew Lori felt guilty sometimes that she slept with Carl and not them or Liam even. Carl was happy to take her though. Daryl thought she made him less lonely. Carl was of an age that he needed people his own age. Beth had hooked up and Carl was on his own. No other women or men his own age for him to hang around with left him lonely. Daryl knew it, even if no one else had recognised it yet.

He was waiting for Carl to take off, knew he was thinking about it and truthfully he understood it. Would probably have done the same thing himself.

It's dusk when they finish. Carl comes up to them with Easy walking beside him, they're holding hands. And Daryl knows what he'd just been thinking about was coming to pass.

"Lori." He says. Lori look over and then at Carl and Easy with a smile.

"Hey you two, what are you doing down here? Messy you know baby." She says to Easy.

"I'm good." Is all she says hugging Carl's leg. He ruffles her hair and looks at Lori and then Daryl. Daryl nods.

Carl nods at him and then speaks. "I'm leaving Mum, I need to find my place in the world." He says no more. Lori stops and stares at him. Daryl doesn't know what he expects but for Lori to firm her lips and blink several times before nodding is not it.

Admittedly he hadn't expected a tantrum the likes of which she used to throw but still. And he suddenly realised she was being strong for Carl, not letting him see how much she was upset. Daryl's heart broke for her.

"When are you going baby?" She asks quietly as she places the knife slowly and carefully on the table.

"First light. Mum, I hope I'll be back one day." Carl says quietly as he stoops and picks up Easy hugging her tightly.

"Me too baby, me too." Carl turns with Easy who has not realised what is going on and walks back inside. Daryl places his own knife on the table and opens his arms to Lori when they're back inside and out of earshot.

The months roll past, Easy is inconsolable for most of the time, becoming sullen and withdrawn. It is only when Rick finds a litter of pups outside after their mother had been caught in a trap that she begins to show some life again. They give her a pup and she lavishes the love and affection she'd had for Carl on the pup.

Soon they're constant companions and her laugh is heard again. Daryl can tell its not the same laugh, he doubts he'll ever hear her laugh so unrestrained again until, when or if Carl returns.

After about a year Lori becomes pregnant again and they both rejoice. Wanting to try for four children they'd never used birth control. But Herschel had said Lori's chances of becoming pregnant again were getting slimmer with her getting older. Daryl doesn't mind admitting he's coddling her though this pregnancy. She's not coping well. It's a hard one.

Wiping her face after a particularly nasty bout of midnight sickness he grins at her. "This fucking kid had better be a saint I can tell you woman." Lori nods and moans quietly.

"I think I might be done after this one Popeye." She answered him. They still called each other Popeye and Olive though mainly in private.

"Yeah me too Olive, me too." Kissing her forehead Daryl climbs into bed between Lori and the wall so she had full access to the bucket he kept there for her. "Good thing is we've got a couple of doctors here now" He says to her.

"I know, but Herschel has gotten me through three births so far, I trust him, he'll do right by me." Daryl nods. He agrees with her.

And when this birth comes it is hard, because she's carrying twins. One of them was a breech which caused no end of trouble. And one of them wasn't well.

For a month they kept him with them, but his heart was not strong enough and in the end Matthew left them quietly one night. It was the absence of his laboured breathing that woke Daryl in a panic. He watched him silently tears streaming down his face as Lori shook beside him.

They were both of a mind not to call anyone, he was in a better place.

"God, Daryl. I hope he doesn't see Carl, I hope he looks over Carl because Carl is thriving." Lori shudders now as they hold each other.

"I hope so too Lori, fuck I hope so too." Daryl turns from Lori and picks up Michael. "Hey there boy, you gotta be strong now, your big brother didn't make it, but you're gonna, we fucking won't allow anything else to happen to you boy." He realises he sounds like Merle suddenly. Shaking his head he and Lori spend the night hugging Michael and Matthew between them before they face the others in the morning.

##########

A year later Lori stands beside Matthew's grave. Daryl beside her with Judith, Liam, Easy and Michael in his arms. They stand silently for several minutes. "I'm pregnant again." Lori says softly. Daryl slides an arm around her even as Liam hugs her waist from the other side and Easy hugs Daryl. Judy moves around to the front of her and hugs her and Daryl together. Spike sits beside Easy, panting as he watches carefully.

This pregnancy she does nothing but fold laundry. She obeys every order Herschel gives her and lets Daryl lift any and everything needed. They hold each other tightly each night even as they both silently begin to grieve, sure that this baby will not survive as well.

The birth is surprisingly easy and another girl is born. But Lori doesn't cope. She feels herself fading away even as Daryl calls to her. Hours later she swims back to consciousness. Pain, she feels pain.

"Daryl?"

"I'm here woman, you're gonna be fine, fucked you up good this time but you're both gonna be fine. Got another girl. What do you want to name her?" Daryl asks as he brushes her hair off her forehead and kisses her softly.

"Ash." Lori answers as she slides back into a pain-filled sleep. When she wakes again Herschel is standing beside her. Older now, stooped but still strong and hale. He twinkles at her.

"No more children. Seven births Lori, I've got you through six but your birthing days are over. That pain you're feeling is from Doctor Tubbs having to remove your uterus." He stopped and his eyes became serious. "I'm sorry, I wish I could have saved it, but I couldn't." He looks down. "You are a survivor, it's time to allow yourself to live Lori, enjoy your life. You've got a wonderful family, love them, cherish them and enjoy them." He leans over and as Daryl had done he kisses her forehead and leaves her with the dull throbbing pain she has to suffer through as they have no heavy painkillers anymore.

It takes Lori some time to recover, she is just glad she does. She slowly begins to live again. She feels that by having Ash that God and Matthew have forgiven her for failing him. She knows it's stupid but she can't help blaming herself. And she and Daryl, God they're like teenagers again. They haven't been like this with each other in several years.

They'd always desired each other, from that first moment at the tent when Daryl had been sharpening his knife and Lori had admitted to him that she thought of him sexually, had done so for some time. And then that night in the house when they'd been together for the first time.

She's tickling Ash one night instead of putting her to sleep. Michael is already sleeping. Liam and Easy are off somewhere and Judith is out scouting when Daryl comes in. "Lori, you need to come outside." He scoops up Ash leaving Michael asleep and tugs on her hand.

"Daryl? What, you're as white as a sheet." Lori lets him drag her outside. There is a group coming up the drive from the gate. Shading her eyes Lori watches them in the dusk. Her hair slips out of its braid, its grey now as is Daryl's. The one thing she mourns is hair dye. But Daryl doesn't mind it so Lori accepts it.

The lines on her face don't bother her as much as the grey hair. But, she is alive, she is well. She is living and she has her family for the most part. Not a lot of people can say that these days.

Frowning she watches. Rick is there, his arm is around someone, someone familiar. But there are other's blocking her way.

And then he looks up and at her. Carl.

"Carl?" Lori questions. She freezes. "Daryl?" She looks to him as he holds Ash. He nods.

"It's him, go." Lori takes off, her long legs eating the ground. He catches her as Daryl would have and swings her around like Daryl still does. Twice they twirl as she sobs in his long hair. Pulling back she looks at him. He has fought she can tell. Shaking her head she swipes the tears from her eyes.

Slowly Carl puts her down grinning at her. She shakes her head at him. Then she slides a gentle finger across his eye patch. "You're well now?" It's all she can ask.

He nods. Then he tugs a figure forward. She's older. Nearly Lori's age but the way Carl slides an arm around her hips tells her she is more than a friend. The children hiding behind her legs confirm it.

"Mum, this is Michonne. And here we have," He bends down grabbing the two children and hauling them up as they squeal delightedly, "Shane and Tina." Lori looks at them. And she cries and smiles at the same time.

"Shane?" She says through her tears. Carl nods.

"God, are you back to stay?" She asks as she leans in and despite the children, her grandchildren shying away she hugs Carl again. Then she pulls away before he can answer and hugs Michonne too. Michonne does not hug her back but Lori doesn't care. For now she's spreading the joy.

Daryl comes up with Ash. "Carl, glad you made it back." He nods to the woman who nods back and takes their children from Carl effortlessly. Lori notices a sword strapped on her back and she looks back at Carl and notices he has two swords strapped on his own back. Neither of them seem to carry guns.

That was to be expected she supposed as they all fell in to walk toward the entrance. They'd been lucky that they'd found a way to make their own ammunition. It gave them an advantage.

Lori steps forward. "I need a minute or I'll cry over you all night. I'm going to make up a bed, do your babies want to stay with you or a room for themselves?" She asks as she steps forward ahead of the group.

"They'll sleep with us." Michonne answers her quietly as she follows, "I'll give you a hand." Lori nods. They step fast toward the prison in silence. If Lori couldn't see Michonne there she wouldn't know someone was beside her. "Thank you."

Lori falters as she looks over at Michonne. "What for?" Michonne shrugs.

"Carl was nervous about coming back, he thought about it for about two years before he finally decided to."

"What? Why?" Lori is confused now.

"Because of me."

"Because you're older?" Michonne nods. Lori laughs. "I'm the last person to judge. I gave up my judging britches years ago. "If you make Carl happy, then as Daryl would say 'I don't fuckin' care'." Michonne snorts.

"The redneck belongs to you then?" Lori laughs now.

"We belong to each other really. He says my legs and pissy personality drew him from the start." She laughs again remembering that first conversation they'd had years ago as it came to her mind.

"And what drew you?" Michonne asked her.

"His watchfulness." Lori answers simply. It was more than that but it would do for now.

She walks inside introducing Michonne as Carl's wife though she has no idea if they think of each other that way. Michonne doesn't contradict her however. Grabbing some linens she goes to an empty room that she knows has a double bed and begins to make it up. Michonne looks around. Then she drops the bag she'd been carrying and stretches. She is scarred as well. They both look like they'd lived through hell.

As she finishes Carl, Daryl and Rick come in. Rick is piggybacking Shane and Carl is holding Tina. Lori grins at him. "You're home." She says. Carl nods and hands Tina off to Michonne who settles her on her hip. He takes Lori in another hug and she lets her tears fall again. She opens her eyes to see Daryl grinning at her and she grins back holding out a hand. He takes it and allows her to tug him into the hug as well, Ash wiggling against Carl's back.

Eventually they pull back and Daryl says, "You're gonna have to find Easy, she'll murder us if she doesn't know you're back before the morning." Lori nods as does Carl.

"I will, where does she sleep?"

Lori grins as Daryl slides an arm around her waist. "You think she stays anywhere other than your old room?" Carl shakes his head but Lori sees a pleased smile on his face.

They leave Carl and his family to settle in and Lori finally settles Ash down with Daryl. Then they just hug. "He's home." She murmurs.

"Knew he would be, kids a survivor." Daryl answers as he kisses the side of her neck. Lori shivers against him. "You gonna be okay with Michonne?" Pulling back Lori looks up at Daryl.

"Why wouldn't I be? Because she's older? He loves her, her age or the colour of her skin, her anything don't hold a candle to the way they look at each other Daryl. I'm going to be more than okay, as long as he's happy. I'm more worried about Easy." Lori knows how much Easy loved Carl, to the exclusion of all others.

And Carl doted on her in return. Now though Carl had a wife, children. How Easy would take that they had no way of knowing yet.

Easy surprises them by welcoming Michonne and Shane and Tina with open arms. Lori and Daryl are nothing but relieved. And it takes but a day before she and Carl are back to their usual selves.

Carl and Michonne take some time to settle in. They're almost like wild animals, the way the walk and talk and act at times makes Lori think a wrong move will have them gut someone without a second thought. There is a ferality in them from living on the edge for so long. She cannot even begin to understand what they've been through. "We had it easy here, relatively I mean." She says to Daryl one night as they settle down.

"Sure have Olive, sure have." Daryl slides his hand down her back and Lori shivers. After all these years, he still arouses her with a touch.

"I love you Daryl, don't tell you that enough." She says simply as she leans down and kisses him knowing it embarrasses him when she gets mushy though he never shushes her.

"Love you too Olive, pissy personality and all." He says gruffly flinching back mockingly as she smacks his shoulder. Then he grabs her and slides her under him pushing inside her before she knows where she is.

"Oh God." Lori says breathlessly as she winds the long legs that captivated Daryl from that very first night when Atlanta had been bombed around his waist and angled her hips so Daryl's cock was as far inside as he could get.

"Not nearly Olive, not nearly. Just Popeye your sailor man." Lori snorts as Daryl wiggles his eyebrows at her. And then he leans down and kisses her. Long and slow, like they had all the time in the world which they did.

**The End.**

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N – Thank you to all my readers, reviewers, followers and to those who also favourited From These Seeds We Grow. Daryl and Lori have been a pleasure to write. It will not be the last of Lori, my MB What Evil Lurks suggested I write a Merle/Lori aka Merri AU-ish fic as they'd both survive. 
> 
> As you all probably know by now, I love a challenge. So…sometime down the track a bit. Yes, I will be going there too. How could I not? Merle – Fuck yeah. Lori, absolutely. The dislike, the anger, the irritation, the sarcasm they both do so well. Yes, definitely going there.


End file.
